The Return
by AidanNovak
Summary: Season 2, Episode 1: Ryan has spent the last six months in Chino with Theresa, Marissa has spent the last four months in rehab - what happens when they both return? CHAPTER 23 is UP! Please Review, Thanks!
1. The Return

Note: I do not own The O.C. or anything else for that matter. This _is_ in fact an R/M story (not by choice really, but that's another story alltogether), it just takes a while to get there. This was my first fanfic, and was previously on The O.C. Message Boards Fan Fiction section, but I have decided to move it here. Please read and review and thanks ahead of time!  
P.S. This starts out in present tense, then changes to past tense about two or three chapters in, just to let you know.

* * *

Ryan and Theresa are sitting together on an old, beat up couch on Theresa's sunporch watching TV. It's late at night and they both looked tired, especially Theresa, who is eight months pregnant, but looks ready to pop. Ryan takes a drink of a soda and then yawns, and Theresa tells him to go ahead and head to bed if he wants, she's going to bed soon anyway.  
  
"Are you sure? I can -" He starts to tell her that he will stay up and keep her company, but she interrupts.  
  
"I'm fine, go to bed," she smiles at him to tell him it's okay.  
  
He kisses her on the forehead, then on her protruding belly, and goes back inside the house.  
  
The sad look on her face says she probably didn't want to be alone after all. Ryan figures their trip tomorrow will cheer her up.

* * *

Seth is tying his boat to the dock when he hears someone giggle behind him. A familiar giggle, he thinks and turns around to see Summer, sitting in another boat. Summer had been avoiding him ever since he got back from his impromptu sailing trip in May, changing her classes at school and spending less time with people who knew Seth so she wouldn't have to see him. He starts to yell her name, but someone, a guy, sits up into Seth's vision and he sees that Summer is sitting on his lap, giggling with him. She puts her arms around him and kisses him.  
  
"Carl!" she squeals when he playfully pushes he toward the edge of the boat, "Knock it off!"  
  
They are laughing and playing and kissing and Seth realizes he lost his chance with Summer when he abandoned her all those months ago, and she had now moved on. He looks down and walks back up the dock with his skateboard and heads home. Summer doesn't even see him. If she did, she would have the same sad look on her face that he did.

* * *

Julie Cooper is standing in her ridiculously huge kitchen, wearing another one of her tight velour track suits, talking on the phone. "Cal," she doesn't sound happy. "Marissa is coming home from rehab tomorrow morning. I need you to be here to show her that we are going to support her as a family. . . It doesn't matter if she hates you, what matters is that she has people here to show that we care about her. . . Okay . . . Thank you, I'll see you then," she smiles at her own manipulative skills, when Jimmy walks in the room.  
  
"Okay, I finished bringing Marissa's bags in, so all she should have tomorrow is a small carry-on. I have to head out, I'm meeting Hailey for dinner."  
  
"Jimmy? Do you ever think about us anymore? What it would be like if we were still together?" She sets down her martini and starts to rub his arm, her hand making it's way up to his shoulder then neck, then down his back as she draws closer to him. He starts to pull away, but when she puts her other arm behind his back and draws her face close to his, he starts to feel helpless. He does still love Julie, but no, this is wrong. He finally pulls away.  
  
"Julie, we can't - we can't do this," he gently takes her arms off him and puts them by her sides. She looks disappointed, and her eyes well up with tears. "I'm sorry," Jimmy says before turning to leave, but he stops. Julie looks up with hope.  
  
"I'll be here at 8 tomorrow. That's when Marissa is due in, right?"  
  
"Right," she says disappointed again.  
  
"See you then," he says and leaves this time.

* * *

Seth is sitting at the breakfast table, eating a bowl of cereal, looking like he's still half asleep. Kirsten and Sandy are also grabbing a bite to eat, but they are standing at the island counter. There is a knock at the door and Seth gets up, puts his cereal bowl in the sink and goes to answer the door. Ryan and Theresa stand on the porch with a suitcase each.  
  
"Hey, man, what's going on?" Seth says as he hugs Ryan, then Theresa and they come in.  
  
"We came up for the weekend," Ryan says as they walk into the foyer and Sandy and Kirsten come in and greet them with hugs as well. "Theresa's mom went out of town for the weekend and we decided . . . well, it's been almost three months since we visited, so . . ."  
  
"Very good, very cool," Seth says before he remembers their obligation this morning. "Oh, we have that thing, though, that – "  
  
"Marissa is coming home today," Kirsten interrupts, "But it's so good to see you two."  
  
"You can go with us," Sandy says and grabs a suitcase to help with.  
  
Ryan looks at Theresa as if to ask if that is okay with her and she nods.  
  
"Okay," Ryan says and grabs the other suitcase.

* * *

Julie walks toward the front door of her mansion, brushing her skirt straight. "Coming!" she says and walks up to the door and opens it.   
Sandy, Kirsten, Seth, Ryan and Theresa all stand outside waiting to be let in. Everyone can see Julie's surprise at the two unexpected guests, but they all file into the house to await Marissa's arrival. Sandy, Kirsten, Seth, Ryan and Theresa follow Julie Cooper into the giant living room, where to everyone's surprise, Jimmy Cooper sits on an overstuffed chair talking to Caleb Nichol.   
They look up as everyone comes in and their eyes go straight to Ryan and Theresa.  
  
"Ryan and Theresa came to show their support too," Kirsten breaks the ice.   
They all shuffle in and sit down to wait for Marissa's return.   
The hospital's mandatory medical transportation would be bringing Marissa home any minute.  
"Did anyone else want coffee?" A voice comes from the kitchen that catches Seth's attention. Summer walks into the room carrying two cups of coffee, one of which she hands to Jimmy.   
"What is he . . What are they . . What's going on?" She looks confused as she glances from Seth to Ryan to Theresa and of course back to Seth.   
"Marissa is going to need all the friends and family she can get when she comes home and we all need to be here for her," Julie pipes up, "and if anyone wants, there is coffee and pastries in the kitchen." Then she goes to talk to Kirsten.   
Sandy joins Jimmy and Caleb in their business discussion and Summer wanders over toward Seth.   
Ryan and Theresa walk off toward the kitchen. 

"Hey Cohen," Summer says stuffing her hands into her pockets nervously.  
"Hey Summer, how's it goin? How are you, you and uh, what's his name? Carl? How are you guys doing?"  
"Look I don't want to talk about that, we're here to be positive and supportive, so I don't want to argue."  
"Okay, whatever, I just thought you might want to explain to me how it is that you broke up with me because I broke your heart, but now you're dating Chad."  
"His name is Carl, Cohen. It's Carl. And I don't want to talk about it. You have no right to even ask about it," Summer says pouting. Seth doesn't see the tears in her eyes as she walks off.   
A few minutes later, as everyone makes small talk to pass the time, the doorbell rings. Ryan and Theresa are still in the kitchen, but everyone else gathers around the foyer while Julie and Jimmy rush to the door. A staff member is standing at the door and hands Jimmy a small luggage bag, then steps out of the way and Marissa appears.   
She looks healthy and sort of happy, and she walk into the house, and into her mother's, then her father's arms. Everyone hugs her and welcomes her home and tells her how glad they are to see her.   
They walk into the living room and Marissa's shoulder's hunch and she looks down as she remembers that she lives here and she will have to stay here with Caleb and her mother.   
Then Ryan walks into the room and her face lights up. He looks upset and starts to say something to everyone, but Marissa interrupts. "Ryan!" she shouts and runs to him, dropping her purse on an end table. She throws her arms around him and holds him tight. He hugs her back for a moment, but then backs away. He looks panicked as he fumbles for the words to say.  
  
"I think - I think Theresa's water broke. I think she's in labor!"  
  
Everyone's jaws drop and they hear a scream from in the kitchen. Theresa was going to have a baby.

"Oh my God," Kirsten says panicked, "It's too early!"   
She and Ryan and Sandy run into the kitchen and escort Theresa out.   
"Somebody call an ambulance," Sandy orders as they lay Theresa on a couch and prop her up with pillows.   
"That could be messy," Seth says. He realizes it's not a time for jokes and shuts up.   
"I'll get some towels," Julie says, then runs upstairs. Caleb follows her, not wanting to deal with a woman giving birth in his living room.   
Ryan kneels beside Theresa and holds her hand. She lets out a scream and Kirsten comes to her side to help also. Everyone else stands around, not knowing what to do.

A little over ten minutes later, the ambulance shows up, and Theresa is on a stretcher being pulled out of the house.   
"I have to go with her," Ryan says to everyone, but looks at Marissa. He stops and hugs her. "Welcome back," he says quietly, "It's good to see you again." It isn't the first time he has seen her since he left for Chino, but it has been over four months, and he is glad that she's okay.   
"I'm going too," Kirsten says, and follows Ryan out of the house. "We'll call you guys as soon as we hear something."   
As they leave, everyone is silent. No one knows what to say. Theresa is only eight months pregnant.

* * *

After a while, Julie asks Marissa if she wants anything to eat, and Caleb interrupts, saying he has a business meeting he is already late to. Marissa rolls her eyes and Julie shoots him a dirty look, but he leaves anyway.

Sandy and Jimmy are talking about the new restaurant they hope to open, and Marissa says she is pretty hungry. Julie wanders into the kitchen to make her breakfast.

"Hey Coop, how ya doin'?" Summer asks Marissa. Seth stands nearby.   
"I'm good, I'm okay. What were Ryan and Theresa doing here?"   
Seth interjects, "They came up for the weekend and Ryan probably wanted to see you, so..."   
Summer looks at Seth and sees how sensitive he can be, not like Carl or any other guy she's dated in the last few months to take her mind off Seth.

Julie comes back in with a plate for Marissa and she sits down with her to eat.   
Seth asks Summer if they can talk.   
"I know you're mad at me-" he starts, but she interrupts him   
"Cohen, I'm not mad at you. I don't care what you do with your life, I'm so over it, okay?"   
"Summer, I didn't mean to hurt you. I needed to . . ." he trails off.   
"You needed to what?!" she gets upset and he realizes she does still care and still hurt because of what he did. "Nevermind, I don't care anymore."   
"You don't sound like you don't care, I just wanted to explain myself."   
"So explain, I don't care. Do or don't, whatever," she tries to act like it's not important but she listens to him intently.   
"Ryan left, and I thought I would be stuck in the same life I had before he came. The loser that no one talks to. I didn't want to be that guy again."   
"Well you wouldn't have! I was here, what about me? I love you," she looks down, "I mean I loved you."   
"I still love you Summer, and I'm sorry for what I did. But you didn't pay any attention to me before Ryan got here. I spent every day alone, playing video games and listening to music that you and your friends made fun of."   
"Things change, I was different. I even started to like your, your music!" She starts to cry and storm off, but Seth grabs her arm and pulls her back.   
"Don't ignore me like you used to do," he says and his eyes tear up a little as well.   
She slowly pulls him toward her and they hug for a long time.

* * *

Later, at the hospital, Theresa is about to give birth. She is in a lot of pain and Ryan and Kirsten sit on either side of her, while the doctor tells her to keep pushing.   
"You can do it," Ryan says supportively, holding her hand.   
"C'mon honey, you're almost there," Kirsten also lends her support, rubbing Theresa's arm. "You're doing so good."   
She lets out a long, loud scream and the baby comes out. The doctor holds up the small, premature baby and says, "You've got yourself a little girl!" He holds her up to Theresa's chest and they all admire her.   
Everyone smiles, then starts crying.   
"We've got to get her off to make sure everything is okay, but she looks like a very healthy baby. Very tiny, but very healthy," the doctor says as a couple of nurses take the baby and he follows them out.

* * *

Ryan hugs Theresa, and Kirsten excuses herself, so they can have a moment to themselves.   
"Thank you for everything, Ryan," Theresa says, "You've been so wonderful this whole time. I'll get a paternity test done right away so you don't have to wonder any longer about the rest of your -"   
"Theresa," Ryan stops her. "There's no rush. It's not important right now."   
"But you deserve to know."   
"Why? What if she's Eddie's baby? Then what?"   
"Then I go home, and my mom can help me take care of her."   
Ryan shakes his head, "I'm here for you and that baby no matter what. Eddie's not a father, whether or not he's the one who, you know . . ."   
Theresa cries and they hug. Ryan pulls away and looks at Theresa. Her face is glowing, she's absolutely radiant. He's lived her for six months, and although she had said over and over that they shouldn't be together, he had fallen in love with her all over again.   
"I love you, Theresa." He leans in to kiss her, and this time, for the first time since he came back to Chino, she lets him.   
After they kiss, she touches his face gently. "I love you too," she says.


	2. The Baby

Note: I do not own The O.C. I barely own the computer I'm writing this on. Sorry this chapter is so short, the next one will be longer. Please read and review, Thanks!

P.S. Does anyone know if I have to put a disclaimer in every chapter? Please let me know...

* * *

The doctor comes in the room smiling. "Everything is fine with your baby. She's 17 inches long and weighs 4 lbs and . ." he looks at his clipboard, "No, 5 lbs and 6 ounces."   
Theresa and Ryan smile at each other.

* * *

Back at Julie and Caleb's house, Sandy and Seth are getting ready to leave. Seth says goodbye to summer and leans in to hug her but she just shakes his hand. "I - I'll talk to you later," she says, then kisses him on the cheek. "Sorry," she wishes she could forgive him that easily, but still feels hurt. Seth looks disappointed as he walks toward the door with Sandy.   
They leave and Marissa tells Julie she wants to go to the hospital to see Ryan. "Summer could go with me, right Sum?"   
"I don't think that's a good idea, Marissa," Julie says, "You don't need anything that's going to upset you right now."   
"Why would that upset me? Mom, I'm fine, I just want to go talk to Ryan."   
"I can take her, Mrs. Cooper," Summer says.   
"Well alright, but you girls be safe and Marissa - I love you, honey. I'm glad you're back."   
"Thank you," Marissa hugs her mother and she and Summer head out.

* * *

On the way to the hospital, Summer and Marissa catch up. Summer tells Marissa about Carl and now Seth, and Marissa tells Summer about rehab. "It was like a resort, with rich kids talking about their feelings all the time."   
"Hey, you're still a 'rich kid' too, Coop," Summer jokes.   
"I know, it was just so, so ... self-indulgent. But I'm done drinking, I don't want to end up like those people."   
"Good," Summer says, "I have to make a phone call, okay?"   
"Yeah, that's fine," Marissa says.   
Summer dials a number and waits for an answer. "Carl? . . . Hey, I need to talk to you . . . No, it's just that, I don't know . . . I don't think this is working . . . No, I do like you, but I like you because - because you like to sail and you're funny and you have big hair and, and when I met you, you reminded me of someone else I was still in love with."   
Marissa looks at her and whispers, "Wow."   
"Someone I am still in love with, actually," She continiues. "I'm really sorry Carl," she says, "but let's face it - we don't ever argue or joke together, and we don't have any chemistry. . . Okay, bye." She hangs up the phone.   
"So are you and Seth getting back together? Marissa asks.   
"No!" Summer says, "That jerk left me for a boat! He's going to have to do some serious butt-kissing before I ever let him touch me again." They laugh together as they pull into the hospital parking lot. They get out and head toward the labor and delivery unit.

* * *

Inside Theresa's hospital room, someone from hospital records is helping Theresa fill out her baby's birth certificate.   
"Have you chosen a name for her yet?" she asks Theresa. Ryan looks at her and they smile. From the time they were 10 or 11 years old, they always hung out together at a diner called Sammie's and decided a long time ago that since that was their special place, they would name the baby Samuel if it was a boy, and Samantha if it was a girl.   
"Samantha," Ryan and Theresa say in Unison, and then lean in toward each other to kiss just as Marissa and Summer are almost to the room.


	3. The Kiss

Note: I don't own The O.C. Please R&R and Thank you for reading my li'l story :)

* * *

Marissa and Summer walked into Theresa's hospital room right as Ryan leaned in to kiss Theresa. They both looked up but it was too late - Marissa had run out of the room and was on her way to the elevator.   
Summer didn't know what to say, so she apologized and went after Marissa.   
"Coop!" she yelled down the hallway. She caught up to Marissa and tried to comfort her. Ryan came down the hall to them and said he was sorry, they should talk.   
"I'll just wait in the lobby," Summer said.

"I'm sorry, it just - it just happened. Literally, just now. We weren't together, I swear." Ryan wanted Marissa to stop crying.   
"You expect me to believe that you've been living with her all these months and nothing happened? Not that it matters, since you broke up with me when I started . . . drinking," she looked at the floor. She didn't want Ryan to see her cry. "But you told me you wanted to be alone for a while!"   
"I have been," he pleaded, "I swear. You have to believe me. I mean, I've known Theresa my whole life and I - I still . . ." he trailed off.   
"You still love her," Marissa finished.   
Ryan nodded. "I'm just really confused right now," he said, "Because I still care about you, but I couldn't go through what my mom did to our family all over again. I couldn't stand by and watch you ruin your life."   
"I quit drinking. I spent the last four months in rehab for you. You think I did that for my mom? Or even my dad? I did it for you, Ryan, and this is my welcome home," she pointed towards Theresa's hospital room.   
"Look," he said, "I'm really sorry. I don't know what to say."   
"You don't have to say anything. I have to go," she started crying again and got on the elevator and left.   
Ryan stood there, confused, worried for Marissa, and anxious about his new life as a father.

When he got back to Theresa's room, she was asleep and the nurse advised Ryan that a paternity test had been set up and he needed to go to room 214. When they got the results, they could finish filling out little Samantha's birth certificate. He left the room to go take the test, and find out if he really was a daddy now.

* * *

"They were probably just emotional over the baby," Summer said, trying to calm Marissa down. They were in Summer's car, but not driving yet. "People kiss when they're really happy or overwhelmed or . . ."   
"In love," Marissa said sarcastically and crossed her arms. "I don't want to talk about it, I just want to go home and sleep. I woke up at 5:30 this morning for hospital discharge."   
"Okay," Summer said and started the car, but she was worried about Marissa.

* * *

That night Ryan slept on a pull-out chair cot next to Theresa's hospital bed. When he awoke, Theresa was awake, holding the baby.   
"Hey," Ryan said sleepily.   
"Good morning," Theresa smiled. She was feeding Samantha and looked very happy.   
Ryan joined them and looked at the tiny baby.   
"Is Marissa okay?" Theresa asked.   
"I don't know, I haven't talked to her since . . ."   
"You should call her," Theresa said. "She was so vulnerable yesterday and I'm sure seeing us, you know, well, I'm sure she was pretty upset." Theresa was genuinely concerned, and Ryan kissed her on the forehead before leaving the room to get some coffee and call Marissa.

He called her from a phone at the nursing station desk and when she picked up he asked how she was doing. She said she was fine, but didn't sound like it.   
"So I guess you're the baby's father?" she asked rudely.   
"I don't know, uh, we don't know yet. We're supposed to get the results this afternoon."   
"Well, good luck with that, I can tell you really hope she's yours."   
"Marissa-" Ryan started but she cut him off.   
"No, I think it's really great. You have a whole new family and life and no need for me anymore. Why are you even calling?"   
"Marissa, please . ." Ryan wanted her to be okay. He never wanted to hurt her, but didn't know what to do.   
"Please what? Be happy for you? Oh, I am, I'm so glad that you're happy now with everything. Look, I have to go. I'm fine, don't worry about me," she said and hung up before Ryan could say anything. He thought about what she said, and she was right about one thing - he did hope that Samantha was his baby.

* * *

Seth had just woken up and was on his way to the kitchen wearing his robe and pajamas when the doorbell rang. He answered the door to find Summer, nervously waiting for him to invite her in. When he did, she asked if they could talk. They walked into the kitchen to chat, but Sandy and Kirsten were in there eating breakfast.

"Oh, hi Summer," Sandy said loudly.   
"Hi Mr. Cohen," she said and turned to Kirsten. "Mrs. Cohen."   
"Hi, kids," Kirsten said, then paused. "Oh, Seth, your father and I were just leaving to go, uh, look at those new gardenias the gardener planted."   
"We were?" Sandy asked confused, then realized they were leaving so Seth and Summer could be alone. "Oh, yeah, we were," he grabbed his coffee and bagel before following Kirsten out of the kitchen.

"So, you couldn't resist the Cohen charm?" Seth joked, and Summer hit him on the arm. "Okay, okay, sorry. What brings you here on this lovely morning?"   
"Well, uh, I don't . . ." she couldn't think of what to say, but she knew what she wanted to do. She grabbed Seth by the face and pulled him toward her. She kissed him long and hard, then pushed him away. "I miss you," she said finally.   
Seth smiled and leaned in to kiss her again, but she hit him on the arm. "Owww," he whined.   
"How could you just leave without saying . . anything?!"   
"Summer, you almost broke up with me because your dad didn't like me! My best friend left and I figured if I had to spend the summer - no pun intended - by myself, I'd rather do it away from Newport Beach society snobs."   
"Oh," Summer realized why Seth left. It wasn't just about Ryan, it was about her too. She was flattered in a way, and finally gave in and kissed Seth again.   
"Summer, does this mean . . . you and I . . . are, you know?" Seth asked with a huge grin on his face.   
"Back together?" she finished. "Only if you promise never to skip town without telling me - or better yet without taking me with you first."   
"Okay, it's a deal," he said and they continued kissing.

* * *

Ryan and Theresa sat in the hospital later that day awaiting the results of the paternity test. They were both nervous. Theresa's mother had finally made it to Newport Beach and was taking Samantha for a walk around the hospital.   
A tall man walked in the room with a file in his hand. Ryan and Theresa sat up straight and looked at each other. "Here goes," she said.   
"Ryan Atwood?" the man said and looked at Ryan.   
"Yes, that's me," Ryan replied   
"The results of your paternity test," he said as he handed Ryan a sheet of paper, "were negative. You are not the father of this baby."   
Ryan stared at the paper with a blank look on his face. He was not relieved, he was sad. He wanted to do something right by Theresa, the girl he had loved and lived next to his entire life. The tall man left and Ryan started to say sorry to Theresa.   
"It's okay, Ryan. We both knew this was a possiblity," Theresa said and started to get out of bed. Ryan was confused - it looked like Theresa was relieved.   
"You're, you're okay with this?" he asked.   
"It's better this way, because now, if you still stick around, I'll know it's because you want to." She said as she started to get dressed. "I'm going to the cafeteria, are you hungry? . . . Ryan?"   
"Uh, yeah," he said, still baffled by her response to the news that he was not the father of the baby.   
She finished dressing and said she would be back soon.


	4. The Breakup

Note: I don't own The O.C. This is a sad chapter for Theresa fans (because there are so many of us, right?) but a good one for R/M fans.

A while after Theresa left the hospital room, Sandy and Kirsten showed up with flowers.   
"Where's Theresa?" Kirsten asked.   
"She went to the cafeteria," Ryan said in a daze.   
"What's wrong?" Sandy asked.   
"I'm not the father," Ryan said.   
They all sat in silence for a moment before Kirsten asked Ryan what he was going to do now. He said he really wanted to finish school and get out of Chino. He told the Cohens he didn't want Samantha growing up there. Kirsten suggested he and Theresa and the baby come live with them in Newport, but Ryan protested.   
"We couldn't impose on you guys," he said.   
"You wouldn't be," Sandy said. He looked at Kirsten and nodded.   
"Okay, here's the thing," Kirsten began, "We've been thinking about it for a while and we wanted to invite the three of you to come and stay with us until you and Theresa finish high school. Eddie isn't going to be around, and nobody wants him around the baby anyway. We could help you with the baby while you go to school. Theresa shouldn't have to work anymore, she's still a kid too."   
Ryan looked at the Cohens smiling, and saw they really did want to help him.

* * *

Theresa was standing outside the room and had heard most of the conversation. She walked in with a tray full of food and offered it to all of them. While they sat and ate, they talked about how if Theresa came to live with them, she could finish school like she deserved to do. Theresa's mom came back and discussed it with them while Kirsten held Samantha. They all decided it would be best for everyone if Ryan, Theresa and the baby came back to Newport Beach.

A few days later, after Theresa and the baby were settled in to the poolhouse and Ryan was in the Cohen's guest bedroom right next to Seth's room, Theresa's mom left for Chino. The next day, while the new nanny, Layla, watched Samantha, Kirsten took Ryan and Theresa to enroll at Harbor. Ryan was welcomed back, and Theresa got in easily with her test scores and GPA from her old school in Chino.

The next week, as they arrived at school together, Ryan and Theresa ran into Marissa outside the school.   
"Hi," Ryan said.   
"Hi," Marissa said and looked at both of them before she walked off and started to cry.

* * *

In the bathroom, she complained to Summer about the situation.   
"How am I supposed to go to school with both of them here? Like it isn't bad enough that he broke up me because he needed to be alone, now he's with someone else and I have to see them together every day."   
"You have to learn to live with it. You can't just not come to school. Forget about all that, there are a lot of new cute guys this year, Coop. I can introduce you to -" Summer was cut off.   
"No, I don't want to meet anyone. I just want to get through the rest of high school without thinking about guys."   
"C'mon, Coop . . " Summer started, but Marissa grabbed her bag and left the bathroom.

* * *

That night, Theresa and Ryan were sitting in the poolhouse kissing. The baby was asleep inside the house and they were getting friendly with each other.   
Ryan started to unbutton Theresa's shirt, but she stopped him.   
"I don't think I can do this," she said looking down. "I'm sorry. I love you Ryan, but this is too soon. I just had a baby and I'm really emotional, and . . ."   
"You're not ready," he said and got up off the bed.   
"It's more than that," Theresa said, "I don't think I'm ready to be in a relationship right now. I mean, I do love you, don't get me wrong. I just…you're my best friend, and so much has happened between us that I…" She trailed off. "I had just had a baby and my hormones were running wild and I don't know if we should be together right now. I really wanted to be friends with you. I think…I think we make better friends than lovers."   
"Really?" Ryan asked. He didn't know what to say, so he didn't say anything.  
He and Theresa went back in the house to have dinner with the Cohens and Summer.

* * *

Ryan walked into the poolhouse on a Saturday to find Theresa feeding the baby. She was two months old now and although she had dark hair and eyes, Ryan and Theresa joked that she got her smile from Ryan. That crooked half smile he always showed when he was nervous.

"Hey," Ryan said, and when Theresa looked up he flashed that smile.   
"Hi," Theresa said as she shifted Samantha in her arms. Theresa was so beautiful, Ryan thought, holding that baby, caring for her the way only a mother could.   
"I'm on my way to the Crab Shack, do you want to come?"   
"No thanks," Theresa replied, "I have homework and then I'm meeting my mom for lunch a little later."   
"You're really amazing, Theresa," Ryan said sheepishly, "You know that right?"   
"Yeah, I know," she joked, then looked down. "Thank you though."

When he and Seth got the restaurant, Summer and Marissa were sitting at a table by themselves. Marissa was no longer mad at Ryan, she understood his confusion. It was the same confusion she had felt with Oliver. She knew if she were still mad at him, she would be a hypocrite.   
"Hey you guys," Summer yelled across the room, "Come sit with us."   
Seth looked at Ryan for approval, and Ryan nodded.   
The sat down with the girls and Seth immediately started telling Summer about his plans for a sailing trip he wanted to take soon.   
"Cohen!" Summer warned.   
"Well, with you of course, if you'd like to come," Seth said as he tried to ease Summer's mind. They continued talking about his plans even though Summer was sure she could never survive on a boat without credit cards and facials.   
Ryan sat down next to Marissa and smiled at her.   
She smiled back and said "Hi."   
They talked for a little while, and when Seth and Summer had finished eating, they went for a walk on the pier.   
"How have you been?" Ryan asked. He hadn't talked to Marissa in almost two months, but he was really asking about her drinking.   
"Good," she said. She knew what he meant, so she added, "Not a drop of alcohol since I went to Rehab."   
They continued talking and made plans to go to the beach together the next day. Marissa was hesitant, but she agreed anyway. She wanted to see how Ryan felt about Theresa. She knew they hadn't been together for a while, but not why or how he still felt about her.

* * *

The next day, Ryan woke up really early. He heard Samantha crying on the intercom and ran down to the poolhouse to get her before she woke Theresa up. Theresa had been working so hard, she deserved a break.   
But when he got down there, she was just picking the baby up.   
"Hey," Ryan said, gently taking Samantha from Theresa's arms. Theresa was still half asleep and smiled thankfully. "You go back to sleep, I'll wake you up later." She just smiled and fell back onto the bed.


	5. The Gift

Note: I do not own The O.C. Wait, do I? Uh, no. No, I don't.

* * *

Ryan spent a few hours with Samantha before waking Theresa up. It was time for him to go meet Marissa.   
"Theresa," he said softly sitting on the bed next to her. He rubbed her arm and she woke up. Samantha was asleep again.   
"Thank you," she said. "You know you do more than enough to help me out, I really appreciate it."   
"As far as I'm concerned," Ryan replied, "You and Samantha are as much a part of my family as the Cohens are."   
He hugged Theresa and started to leave, then stopped.   
"Hey, Seth kind of forced me into this thing tonight," he explained "We're going to play Scrabble and Jenga - I know it sounds kind of lame, but -"   
"It sounds great," Theresa said, happy that they could all be friends, "I'll be there."   
"Okay, 9 o'clock-ish, I'll see you then."

He was ten minutes early when he got to the beach, but Marissa was already waiting at the pier where they planned to meet.   
"Hey," he said causing her to look up.   
"Hi," she smiled and offered her hand for him to hold. She had been thinking about things, and she knew that Ryan cared for her, and she understood why he would always be friends with Theresa. They grew up together, they went through all their problems together, they even did musicals together. He took her hand in his and they walked down to the beach together.

* * *

Theresa stepped out of the poolhouse on the morning of Christmas Eve. Seth and Summer were sitting by the pool, dangling their feet in the warm water. Even though it was winter, it was still 72 degrees outside. Theresa said hello to Seth and Summer and walked into the house. Kirsten was waiting for her and had coffee for two ready to go on the counter.   
"You ready, hun?" She asked Theresa.   
Sandy walked in on the conversation and asked, "Ready for what? Where are you two going now?"   
"We're going shopping, Samantha needs new clothes. Again! She's growing so fast," Kirsten had taken Theresa shopping every weekend since she came to stay with them.   
The main reason she was there was because Ryan had wanted to be near her, but now she was missing Chino more and more every day. Even with the shopping and the nanny and all the extravagences of her life in Newport, she wanted to go home. She called her mother every night, usually crying with homesickness. Ryan had caught on and convinced her to stay twice now. He liked to play with Samantha and he really liked to see Theresa so well taken care of. She deserved it, after all the hard work she had done in her life to take care of others, she deserved this. And her mother had convinced her to stay, too, because she was getting an excellent education and didn't have to work for a living at such a young age.

So Theresa hung out with Ryan or Seth when their girlfriends were busy, she kept Kirsten company when Sandy worked late, she went shopping with Marissa - once - and she even made a few new friends at school, but her heart just wasn't in it. And when it came right down to it, the only reason she really stayed was because she wanted a good life for her daughter.

* * *

Ryan came downstairs and into the kitchen as Kirsten and Theresa were getting ready to leave.   
"Hey, what's going on?"   
"We're going shopping," Theresa said, smiling slightly.   
Ryan's eyebrows raised and he smiled, "Christmas shopping?"   
Theresa laughed. "No, besides I already got you something."   
"I got you something too," Ryan said, "and thanks again for, you know, helping me with Marissa's present."   
Theresa smiled and she and Kirsten took off for the mall.

* * *

At the pool, Seth and Summer had begun to play and splash each other. Summer was squealing at Seth, begging him not to get her wet.   
"Okay," he said and stood up.   
"Thank you," Summer said and started to get up too, but before she could Seth jumped into the pool right in front of her and completely soaked her.   
"Cohen!" She screamed as he pulled her into the pool and dunked her head under the water. When she came up she was trying to act mad, but she started cracking up.   
"You better watch it Cohen," she screamed, as they continued to play in the water.

* * *

After Theresa and Kirsten got back from their shopping trip, Theresa went to the poolhouse to get ready to leave. She was going to Chino to spend the holiday with her mother and some other relatives that were coming over. She had packed and was singing to Samantha when Ryan came in without knocking. He was so used to the poolhouse being his that he always forgot to knock. Theresa looked up and stopped singing.   
"Oh, hey," Ryan said quietly. "Please . . keep singing."   
And she did. She finished the lullaby and set the baby in her bassinet.   
Ryan handed Theresa a present with a big bow on it.   
"Oh, you didn't have to-" she started.   
"I know," Ryan interrupted, "I wanted to."   
She sort of laughed as she opened the gift. It was a framed black and white picture of the two of them. They were just kids in the picture, maybe 10 or 11 years old. Theresa's eyes watered, and she quickly wiped the tears from her face.   
"Thank you," she whispered, then turned to the bed and picked up a clothing sized gift box and handed it to him.   
He smiled and slowly opened the box to find a 3-pack of Hanes "wife-beaters." He and Theresa laughed, but then he picked up the undershirts to find a framed photograph as well, only this one was of Ryan and Marissa.   
"Oh, Theresa. This is, this is really . . . Thank you." Ryan hugged Theresa before leaving so she could finish getting ready.

Ryan came back into the house, and sat down in the kitchen, where Kirsten was on the phone.   
"Okay, Dad, we'll see you then," she finished on the phone and hung up. Just then, Sandy walked in, hearing the end of her phone call.   
"Caleb's coming over?" Sandy asked, obviously not thrilled to hear the news.   
"Yes," Kirsten said, "and I know you two are going to get along wonderfully. It's Christmas, Sandy."   
"Yeah, okay," Sandy said as he reached into the refrigerator for a snack.   
"So Julie's coming too?" Ryan asked looking up from the newspaper he was reading.   
"Yes," Kirsten said again, "and I know YOU two are going to get along wonderfully. It's Christmas, Ryan."   
Ryan smiled and nodded to Kirsten and said, "Yeah . . Christmas."   
"Oh, and Marissa will be joining us as well," Kirsten remembered out loud. She looked from Ryan to Sandy. "Jimmy and Hailey," she said slowly, as if she were telling juicy gossip, "are in Hawaii on vacation . . . together," she emphasized.

* * *

At dinner, Marissa sat down next to Ryan and put her hand in his. Seth waited for Summer to show up, but when she didn't and dinner was about to start, he called her cell phone and got no answer. When he called her house, her father told Seth she was busy. Seth was upset but didn't want to ruin Christmas dinner for everyone else, so he just said her car battery died and she wouldn't be there for dinner.

* * *

Note: Sorry to the people who already read this on the O.C. boards, I'm getting it all up as quick as I can (I'm too busy for my own good lol). The next few chapters are a very long Christmas night for R/M & S/S that has to do with the reason Summer didn't show up for dinner, so be sure to check back. Thanks 


	6. The Intrusion

Note: I don't own The O.C.  
This chapter has a little sexual content (but no actual sex lol) and you find out what's up with Summer's disappearing act for Christmas dinner. Hope you like it, please R&R!

* * *

After dinner, Seth, Ryan and Marissa went into the guest bedroom where Ryan had been staying. They talked for a little while, then Seth left to go try Summer's cell phone again.

Ryan and Marissa sat on the floor together, and Marissa noticed the framed picture of Ryan and herself.   
"Where did that come from?" she asked, pointing to it.   
"Uh, Theresa made it," he said. That reminded him of him his present for Marissa and he got up and got it from his dresser. He handed her the very small gift box in dark purple wrapping paper. "Oh, Ryan," she said taking it from him. She opened it with a big smile on her face, but smiled even bigger when she saw the beautiful necklace inside. It was a silver heart on a chain and Marissa loved it. "It's perfect," she said, and he helped her put it on. She kissed Ryan passionately and they held each other close as they continued to kiss. "I'll give you your present later," she said, but was interrupted when Seth burst back into the room.   
"I'm going over there," Seth said, obviously upset. "I don't know what's going on, but I'm going to find out why she's blowing me off."   
"Seth," Ryan said, "maybe she just wants to spend Christmas with her dad."   
"No, there's something else going on, I can feel it in my . . something. I just know, okay?"   
"I'm sure it's nothing," Marissa tried to comfort him, but Seth was already grabbing his jacket.   
"Well," Seth said on his way out, "you two just stay here and continue making out, I'm going over to Summer's if my parents ask."   
"Okay," Ryan and Marissa said in unison, then laughed at Seth's behavior.   
When they were sure he was gone, Marissa got up and locked the door. "Now, for YOUR present," she said taking off her jacket walking toward him.

After Marissa locked the door to the guest bedroom Ryan was staying in and took off her jacket, Ryan stood up. He put his arms around her and they began to kiss.   
"Merry Christmas," Marissa said as she peeled her shirt off and over her head. Ryan's eyes widened and he smiled his crooked half smile at her. They kissed again as Marissa unbuttoned Ryan's shirt.   
"You don't have to -" he began, but she put her finger to her lips and whispered, "Shhh..." as she smiled at him.   
After they were both topless, they sat on the bed and continued kissing each other gently. Marissa stood up and took off her skirt, revealing lacy pink panties with a black bow. She straddled Ryan and continued kissing him as she unbuttoned his pants.

Just as Ryan and Marissa were about to get into bed together, Marissa's cell phone rang. As an irritated sigh escaped her lips, Ryan stood up and put his shirt back on.   
"No," Marissa said as she looked for her phone, "I'll get rid of whoever it is, wait for me." He left his shirt on but didn't button it back up, he would wait for her to get off the phone.   
"Hello?" she asked, finally finding her phone in a pile of her clothes at the foot of the bed. "Seth? . . . What? . . ." She seemed upset and gave Ryan an apologetic look, and he buttoned his shirt back up and gathered her clothes from the floor.   
"Okay, we'll come over," Marissa said rolling her eyes and hanging up the phone. "Ryan, I'm so sorry."   
"Don't worry about it," Ryan said, handing Marissa her clothes, "What's wrong with Seth?"   
"It's not Seth, he said something was wrong with Summer and she won't talk to him." Marissa finished putting her clothes back on, and grabbed her jacket.   
"Okay, let's go," Ryan said as the two walked out the door.

* * *

When they got to Summer's house, Seth was waiting right outside the front door.   
"What took you guys so long?" he sounded panicked, "Did I interrupt a little Christmas nookie or something?"   
Marissa and Ryan looked at each other and said "No" at the same time.   
Seth laughed nervously, "Okay . . . Anyway, something is wrong with Summer. When I got here, she was crying, she had makeup .. everywhere," he said as he motioned around his face.   
"I'll take care of this," Marissa said, and knocked on the front door of the Roberts house. Her father answered the door.   
"You kids shouldn't be here," he said sternly, glaring at Seth. "Summer's upset about something and won't even talk to her own father about it."   
"Mr. Roberts," Marissa pleaded, "please let us talk to her, we won't be long and if she doesn't want to talk, we'll leave. . . I promise," she added and smiled sweetly at him.   
"Okay," he said and stepped aside as the three visitors shuffled into the house.

They went upstairs and Marissa knocked again, on Summer's bedroom door this time.   
"What?!" Summer yelled from the other side of the door.   
"Summer, it's me, Marissa," she replied, leaning close to the door.   
"Coop?" Summer asked as she flung open the door. "Ugh!" She said, upset at the sight of the boys. She grabbed Marissa's arm and pulled her into the room, then slammed the door shut on Ryan and Seth.   
Seth threw his arms in the air. "I didn't do anything, dude, I swear." Ryan just shrugged his shoulders.

Inside the bedroom, there was tissue everywhere, and Summer's eyes were red and puffy.   
"Summer, what is going on?" Marissa asked. She was scared; she had never seen Summer like this before.   
But Summer didn't say anything, she just stared at Marissa, who put her arms around Summer and hugged her.   
"I'm gonna miss you so much, Coop," she finally said in a shaky voice, barely above a whisper.   
"What? What do you mean you're going to miss me?" Marissa pulled away and let out a nervous laugh, "Where are you going?"   
"Baltimore," Summer said with a disgusted look on her face. "Ew," she added with a lot less enthusiasm than usual.   
Marissa looked confused, but couldn't get any words out. Summer rolled her eyes and explained. "I found a letter from a clinic in Baltimore welcoming my dad to their practice. And lease papers for a house there, too." Summer started to cry again. "My dad didn't even tell me! He didn't talk to me about this at all, but the lease starts January 15th. What am I gonna do, Coop?"   
"I don't know," Marissa replied slowly, trying to hold back her own tears. She put her arm around Summer again. "We'll figure something out, sweetie," said, but she wasn't sure that they would. Summer might be leaving their Newport Beach world for good, and Marissa had no idea what to do about it.

* * *


	7. The News

Note: I don't own The O.C.  
This chapter is the conclusion of the long Christmas night, but with a twist at the end. Please R&R, thanks!

* * *

Marissa and Summer sat together in silence for what seemed like a long time. Summer got herself together and stopped crying. She cleaned the smeared makeup from her face and reapplied her mascara.   
"You should talk to your dad," Marissa said softly, not wanting to upset Summer any further.   
"Yeah, okay," she grabbed her purse and Marissa followed her out of her bedroom. Ryan and Seth were nowhere to be seen.   
They went downstairs and into her father's study, where he was sitting with the boys, who looked like they knew something was wrong. Seth stood up immediately and looked at Summer, but didn't know what to say.   
"Summer, we need to talk," her father said.   
"About moving to Baltimore?" she said angrily. "What? You told them, but not me?!"   
"We'll wait outside," Ryan said, motioning for Seth and Marissa to go with him.   
Once they were out of the room, Summer's father Neil confirmed Summer's fears. He had accepted a full time position at a cosmetic surgery clinic in Baltimore, Maryland, and they were going to be leaving in less than two weeks.   
Summer let him finish as she sat quietly, trying not to cry again. When he finally finished, she stood up, gave him a look that could kill, and walked out of the room. She didn't ask any questions, she didn't yell or scream, she didn't get angry at him for not telling her until now. At least not so he could see.   
She found the others waiting for her in the kitchen.   
"Let's get out of here," she said. She didn't stop to explain and they followed her out of the house. "Merry Christmas to me," she said sarcastically as they all piled into the car Seth was driving and Marissa and Summer sat in the backseat.

* * *

They drove to a place high in the hills, and Summer pulled a liquor bottle out of her purse and took a big gulp, followed by a nasty look on her face.   
"Sum," Marissa started with a warning tone, but then stopped when she saw Summer's glare. "Fine," she said and grabbed the bottle from her best friend, also taking a huge drink.   
Ryan noticed what they were doing as Seth parked the car at an overlook.   
"You guys are drinking?" he asked in disbelief. "You are not getting back in the car with that bottle, do you hear me?"   
"Fine," Summer said as she took another drink.   
Seth pulled a blanket out from the back of the car and spread it out on the ground. The four of them sat down together to admire the view, and Marissa and Summer passed the vodka back and forth until the bottle was completely empty.   
Seth looked at Ryan behind the girls, but Ryan just shrugged.   
"You know, Sum," Marissa slurred, "It won't be that bad. Now that my mom's married to that Trump wannabe, we can just fly you out on a private jet every weekend." The girls giggled in their intoxicated state.   
Ryan and Seth were the only ones that heard a car pull up somewhere behind them. They turned around as two police officers got out of the car and started walking toward them.   
Panicked, Ryan tossed the bottle off the overlook and told Summer and Marissa to keep quiet. They all turned around just as the cops walked up to them.

Ryan jumped up as the police approached them.   
"Officer," he said.   
"What are you kids doing up here so late?" the tall thin one asked in a gentle voice.   
"We, uh, we just," Ryan stuttered as he pointed at the others, "my friend is moving away and she's having kind of a hard time, so we just came here to talk."   
"Okay, well, it's past curfew now so you should get home soon," the same cop said and started to turn around. But the other one, he was shorter and meaner looking, he wasn't satisfied.   
"What's wrong with them two?" he asked looking at Summer and Marissa. They were giggling and fumbling around on the blanket.   
"Uh, them? Nothing, they, uh, uh..." Ryan didn't know what to say. They were drunk? No, Ryan thought, better not say that.   
"Oh, you know," Seth said casually as he jumped up and stood next to Ryan, "Women. They're so dramatic, no one ever knows why," he said shaking his head in mock shame, "_They_ don't even know why."   
The short police officer chuckled. "Yeah, alright. Get 'em outta here though, this ain't no place for kids."   
"Yes sir," Seth nodded as they walked away and got into their car. "Hmm, who knew a little sexist commentary would get rid of the law," he joked. He sat back down on the blanket and Summer laid her head in his lap. "Don't throw up down there, okay?" he said as he stroked her hair.   
Ryan hesitantly sat down next to Marissa, who was a little bit tipsy, but not drunk. "Are you, uh. . .okay?" he asked her.   
"I'm fine," she said smiling. She cuddled up against him, making it clear that she didn't want to talk about her drinking. She hadn't even been out of rehab for 2 months and she was drinking again. Ryan figured they could talk about it later.

After a while, Summer passed out in Seth's lap and he maneuvered his way out from underneath her and walked/carried her to the car. He stood outside the car door and called his mom to let her know everything was fine.

"So," Ryan started, "You ready to go? It looks like they are," he nodded toward the car.   
"Yeah, okay," Marissa said. Ryan stood up and offered her help, but she insisted on getting up herself, and she made it on the second try. When she saw Ryan's look, she got upset. "I'm fine!"

Ryan drove this time and pulled the car up to the Cohen's house.   
"Dude, what are we doing?" Seth asked, trying to hold Summer up so she didn't fall onto him again.   
"Theresa's in Chino," was all Ryan said, and he and Seth propped Summer up and took her to the empty poolhouse. They got her into the bed and Seth kissed her forehead.   
"I can't believe she's really going to move away," Seth said. It was finally sinking in with him, and he moped off into the main house.   
"Thanks," Marissa said. "I'll call my mom and Summer's dad."   
"Okay," Ryan said, still concerned about Marissa's drinking. "You still don't want to talk?" he blurted out.   
"Ryan, you don't have to worry about me-"   
"But I do!" he interrupted her. He continued in a softer tone, "I care about you, okay? I want you to be able to talk to me."   
"Well, thank you," she smiled, "but I'm okay." She put her arms around him and they kissed. "Maybe I could . . come and stay in your room," she said.   
Ryan smiled back, but he knew that wasn't a good idea. "Kirsten's probably still up, and Summer . . . well, you should stay here with her, you know?"   
"No, you're right." She was a little disappointed, but she knew he was right. She kissed him again.   
"I'll see you in the morning," Ryan said before leaving, and went back into the house.

* * *

The next morning at around 11:00 am, Ryan and Seth came into the poolhouse to find Summer sitting on the bed holding her head and moaning. Marissa wasn't there.   
"Are you okay?" Seth asked and sat next to Summer.   
"Where's Marissa?" Ryan looked around the room.   
"I don't know," Summer said, head still down in her hands. She looked up just for a moment to say that Marissa was gone when she woke up.   
"Need . . coffee," Summer said, her hangover making her miserable.   
Seth led her into the house, holding her up when she stumbled.

Just as Ryan was about to panic and go looking for Marissa, she walked into the poolhouse.


	8. The Wait

Note: I do not own The O.C.  
EXCITING chapter - Ryan and Marissa finally... (you'll have to read to see :) And Seth and Summer try to deal with her leaving. Please R&R, thanks!

* * *

Just as Ryan was about to panic and go looking for Marissa, she walked into the poolhouse looking happy and refreshed.   
"What . . where have you been?" Ryan asked.   
"Wouldn't you like to know?" she smiled seductively and put her jacket and purse on a chair.   
Ryan looked at her, confused.   
"Just kidding," she laughed, but got serious when she saw that Ryan wasn't in the mood. "I saw my therapist. I made a mistake last night. Of making other people's problems my own, which I do, like, all the time. It's something I'm working on," she said and cracked a small smile again, trying to see if Ryan was upset, but he reciprocated with his own little smile.   
"So you can talk to her about it but not me?" Ryan teased.   
"Well, that IS her specialty," she joked back. "Where's Summer?"   
"Hung over. In the kitchen. Coffee," he explained.   
Marissa nodded, biting her lower lip and walking toward Ryan. She put her hands on his face and pulled him toward her. They kissed passionately, and Marissa playfully pushed Ryan onto the bed and straddled him, where they continued to kiss passionately.

* * *

In the kitchen, Seth and Summer sipped coffee as Seth waited for the toast to pop up. The both had somber faces.  
"So Baltimore, huh?" Seth wanted to tell Summer not to leave, to run away with him to Tahiti and stay with him forever, but he didn't. He knew it would only upset both of them.  
"Yeah," she replied, then paused. "Baltimore," she said with defeat in her voice.  
Seth buttered the toast and sat down next to Summer. He scooted his chair close to her and gently tucked a few loose strands of hair behind her ear. "What am I going to do without you?"  
"I don't know," she looked up at him, "but if Ryan leaving makes you take off to Avalon, then my leaving better get you all the way to Tahiti," she joked, trying to lighten the mood. But Seth wasn't in the mood to joke. He kissed Summer on the forehead and fed her a piece of toast. He didn't know what to say, so he just held her.

* * *

Back in the poolhouse, Ryan and Marissa were still on the bed. They were kissing and touching each other lovingly. Marissa pulled her shirt off and then took Ryan's off as well. As she unbuttoned his pants, he worked hard to keep his breathing under control. Marissa kissed his neck, then his chest. Ryan pulled Marissa's hair off of her neck and kissed her gently on her collarbone as she shivered. They moved to the center of the bed as they continued to kiss.

* * *

Sandy and Kirsten walked into the kitchen together to find and Seth and Summer in a silent embrace. After Seth told them everything about Summer leaving, all four of them were in a bad mood.  
"I'm so sorry, honey," Kirsten said to Summer. "I'm sure your father had a good reason for keeping this from you."  
"Although I can't imagine why," Sandy said without thinking. Kirsten glared at him. "Well, yeah, I'm sure he, uh, yeah, he probably had a, you know a good reason," he stuttered.  
"Do you want me to take you home?" Kirsten asked Summer. "You probably have a lot to talk about with your father."  
"No, thank you though," Summer stood up. "I kind-of just wanna hang out here if it's okay."  
"Of course," Kirsten said sympathetically, then turned to Seth. "Your father and I are going over to your grandfather's house for a while, he needs some help with a legal issue and Julie and I have some plans to go over for the Newport New Year's benefit party. We'll be back tonight in time for dinner."  
"Okay," Seth said, still feeling down.

They left and Seth and Summer went upstairs to Seth's room.

"I guess you probably want to have goodbye sex or something," Summer said.  
"Summer, you're not leaving for a couple weeks," Seth laughed nervously. Her comment caught him off guard. "But, yeah, sure, if you're offering."  
Summer threw a pillow at him. "You're supposed to say 'No, I just wanna be with you, we don't have to have sex.'"  
"Oh, sorry," he laughed again, but grabbed her around the waist and kissed her anyway.  
She put her arms around his neck and kissed him back.

* * *

Ryan and Marissa were down to just their underwear and they were breathing heavily.

"You ready to do this?" Ryan asked.

Marissa smiled and kissed him again. "I've been ready," she said.

Ryan got up to get a condom - he didn't want to make the same mistake he made with Theresa again.

When he got back, Marissa was kneeling on the bed.

"I love you," she said.

He knelt in front of her and held her hands in his. "I love you too," he said. She looked down, remembering all the times she told him that before without a response, but he pushed her chin up gently so she was looking at him again. "I love you," he repeated.

They laid down on their sides facing each other and Marissa laid her hand on Ryan's face while she kissed him. He put his hand on her back and pulled her closer to him. He kissed her cheek, then her neck, then her shoulder. Then they made love for the first time, there in the pool house, in Ryan's home. It was a very Merry Christmas for both of them.

* * *

The next Friday was New Year's Eve. Ryan, Marissa, Seth and Summer had all planned on going to the benefit party that Kirsten was helping with. Seth was in his bedroom getting ready when Ryan popped in to check on his progress. He was sitting slumped over on his bed, still not dressed.

"What's going on, man? We gotta leave in like 10 minutes," Ryan said checking his watch.  
"What's the point?" Seth whined, "Summer's leaving and all I wanna do is mope around. Why should I go out and pretend I'm happy about it?"  
"For Summer," Ryan said. "So she can be happy."  
Seth paused as he thought about this.  
"You know what dude? You're right, I'm gonna get ready and go out and show a Summer a good time before she leaves," Seth said as he started to dress. "Thanks man," he said to Ryan.  
Ryan nodded, but had that look on his face he has when Seth confuses him, which if often. "Okay then," he said as he left the room to finish getting ready himself.

* * *

When they got to the party, they separated to find their girlfriends. Seth found Summer at the bar, and decided to have a drink with her. It would be easier to act happy for her sake if he was a little tipsy. Ryan found Marissa in a corner looking around the room, presumably for him.

"Hey," he said as he walked up from behind and tapped her shoulder.  
"Oh!" she let out a short scream, then laughed when she saw it was Ryan. "You scared me," she said smiling.  
Ryan stepped back and looked at Marissa. She was wearing a long beautiful light pink dress and had her hair swept back in elegant waves. "You look . . uh . . you look great," he finally got the words out.  
"Thank you," she said blushing. She looked out at the dance floor and noticed that people had begun to dance. She knew Ryan hated to dance, so she didn't even bother to ask.  
But he saw her looking and he knew she liked to dance. "Do you want to? .. Dance?" he asked hesitantly.  
"Are you sure?"  
"Uh," he looked out at the other couples dancing, "Yeah, let's do it."  
"Okay," she said as he grabbed her by the hand and led her out to the dance floor.

The song that was playing ended and a slow song came on. Ryan pulled Marissa in closer and wrapped one arm around her back and held her hand with the other. They danced against each other for the whole song, and when another fast song took over the speakers, they continued to hold each other and move slowly. They had finally made love, and to them, there was no one else in the huge ballroom.


	9. The Last Party

Note: I guess I don't own The O.C. :(  
I've changed the format of the dialog a little to make it more reader-friendly. Hope everyone likes it, please R&R.

* * *

"So, Cohen," Summer said as she threw back a shot of Tequila. The New Year's party had turned out to be more than she could handle; seeing all the people she knew she was going to miss had already justified four drinks. "How long after I leave are you gonna hook up with some Harbor skank?!"

"Summer, YOU go to Harbor. How can you call Harbor girls skanks?"

"Well, if you're hooking up with them, then they're skanks to me," she said as she motioned to the bartender to get her another drink.

"Yeah, well, it's not gonna happen," Seth said as he turned toward the bar and stared straight ahead. Summer looked at him, realizing how much he cared about her.

"Aww, Cohen," she slapped his shoulder. "That's so sweet!"

Seth tried to hide how upset he was that Summer was leaving, but his face showed it all. He tried to be strong for her, but all he could think about was how far away Baltimore was.

"I don't want you to leave, Summer. I'm trying to be happy so we don't have to think about it, but I can't imagine life without you."

"I'll be back, I'm totally gonna visit like all the time," she reassured him. Now Summer was trying to be strong for Seth. "Let's dance, Cohen," she grabbed him and dragged him out to the middle of the room. She held him tight while they danced, she wanted this moment to last forever. She decided to stop drinking so she could remember this night.

* * *

Right before midnight, Seth and Summer met up with Ryan and Marissa at a table near the bar. As they counted down to the New Year, Marissa sat on Ryan's lap and Summer was cuddled up in Seths chest.

10 . . 9 . . 8 . . Ryan looked up at Marissa and mouthed "I love you" to her . . 7 . . 6 . . Seth pushed Summer's hair out of her face and gently stroked her cheek . . 5 . . 4 . . 3 . . both couples looked into each other's eyes . . 2 . . 1 . .

"Happy New Year!!!" everyone in the room yelled to each other.

Marissa put her arms around Ryan and kissed him softly.

Seth guided Summer's face upward and kissed her passionately. It might be the last Newport event they ever spent together.

* * *

"Cal," Julie called as she walked into the living room.

"Yes, Juju?" he asked, not looking up from his paperwork.

"I thought we were going to have lunch today at Aubergine," she said in a whiny tone when she realized he was in the middle of something that looked important. "Cal," she whined.

"I'm sorry, dear; I have a lot of work to take care of today," he still hadn't looked up.

"Fine," she pouted, "but you owe me. Maybe tomorrow we can have lunch at Pavilion."

He ignored her as he was deep in thought and work.

* * *

With only two days before she was to board a plane for Baltimore, Summer was sulking around her mostly packed-up house as if her life was over. Seth came over to spend some time with her, but she looked like she needed to get out.

"Do you want to go sailing?" he asked

"Eww! No," she said.

Seth rolled his eyes. "Fine. But you need to get out of this house, it's . ." he looked around and made a sour face, "kinda creepy in here with all the boxes and everything covered in sheets and –"

"Okay, Cohen. I get it. Let's get out of here," she grabbed her jacket and purse and they walked out the door.

* * *

Ryan was in the poolhouse with Theresa and her baby, Samantha when Marissa came over. Kirsten walked her out back, and Marissa came into the poolhouse to find Ryan cleaning spit-up from the baby off of his shirt. Marissa and Theresa both laughed at him.

"Yeah, thanks," he said sarcastically.

Theresa had just finished getting ready to leave and she took Samantha from Ryan.

"Where ya going?" Ryan asked.

"Kirsten's taking us shopping," she said. Ryan kissed Samantha on the forehead and said goodbye to them as they left.

"Well, look at you," Marissa said grinning. "You're a regular _baby_ magnet. She likes you."

"Yeah, what can I say?" Ryan joked. "Girls like me, it's a gift."

"Ha ha," Marissa said, playfully hitting him with her purse. She looked over at the bed, then Ryan did too. It was **_the_** bed, their bed. The bed they first made love on not long ago. Ryan gave Marissa a suggestive look and nodded toward the bed. She bit her lower lip and dropped her purse to floor as she took her sweater off, revealing a small tank top. Ryan locked the door, just in case. He knew Sandy was at work and Kirsten had gone shopping with Theresa, but he also knew from experience you couldn't be too careful when it came to locking bedroom doors.

He and Marissa stood and held each other while they kissed. Then she sat on the bed and took her shoes off while Ryan procured a condom from the bathroom.

"Who would have ever thought," Marissa said when he came back, "when you came here from Chino we'd end up together?"

"I did," Ryan said as he sat down next to her.

Marissa threw her arms around him and tackled him to the bed. She couldn't help but smile at how wonderful things had turned out between them.

* * *

Seth and Summer ended up on The Summer Breeze anyway, although they didn't sail anywhere. They were sitting on the docked boat eating fast food out of bags.

"I'm gonna miss this," Seth said.

"Yeah, me too," Summer agreed as she fed him a french fry. "I'll be back when I turn 18, you know? I'm not staying in Baltimore forever."

"A year, huh?" Seth pondered how the time apart would affect their relationship. Then he realized what it was Summer had wanted to hear from him, and he knew it was what he wanted to. "I'll wait for you," he said matter-of-factly.

She looked at him, surprised, and smiled as she started to cry. "Really?"

"Yes, really. I've waited so long to be with you, and I'm not gonna let 23 hundred miles and less than a year mess that up for me. . . For us."

She crawled over and sat on his lap. "I love you, Cohen."

"I love you too, Summer," he said as he put a french fry in her mouth.


	10. The Sleepover

"The Sleepover"

Note: I don't own the O.C, but there a few characters coming in a little while that I do :) A few chapters away still though.  
This chapter has more sex, but not just R/M. Should I rate this differently that PG-13? Let me know if you think so... Please R&R, thanks!

* * *

Ryan and Marissa laid in bed together, both on their backs staring at the ceiling, after they had sex. Ryan held Marissa's hand as she talked about the shopping she had to do that day.

"You're still coming with me, right?" she asked. "You're not too tired now, are you?"

He just smiled and leaned over and kissed Marissa on the nose.

"Good," she said. "Let's go."

She started to get up, but Ryan pulled her back onto the bed and against his chest. "Lie down with me for a little while," he smiled sleepily.

"But, but," she said giggling. He was grabbing her around her ribs and stomach to keep her there, but he was tickling her. "Stop!" she squealed, laughing harder.

"Stay," he said, finally overpowering her. He pulled her toward him, this time her back was against his chest.

"This is pretty comfy," she said, surrendering.

Ryan pulled the blanket over both of them, and after a few moments, they were both asleep.

* * *

"A slumber party?!" Summer thought Marissa must be joking. They hadn't had a slumber party since they were 13 years old. "With who? You and I are basically the only girls we hang out with."

"You and me . . and Ryan and Seth," Marissa wanted to make Summer's last night in Newport fun. "Sandy and Kirsten are gonna be gone til after midnight, and Theresa's in Chino for the weekend and said we could use the poolhouse."

"You're serious, Coop," Summer realized she wasn't joking.

"Yeah, it'll be so much fun."

Summer shrugged her shoulders and laughed. "Okay!"

* * *

Marissa and Summer got the Cohen's house right as the sun was setting. They had backpacks full of their clothes and toiletries and they were giggling like little girls again. Seth answered the front door.

"Welcome, ladies, to Seth's magical sleepover party," he invited them in.

In the living room, Ryan was playing a video game and paused it when the girls came in.

"Hey," he said.

"Hi," Marissa said and picked up a game controller. "You ready to have your butt kicked?"

They played video games for a while, taking turns, until everyone got tired of hearing Summer whine about how the game was cheating against her. The whole night was for her after all, so they decided to eat. In the kitchen, Seth microwaved frozen finger foods and they ate together, talking and laughing, but avoiding the topic of Summer's departure. When they finished eating and goofing off, Seth suggested they go for a swim.

"Ugh, no," Summer said. "I don't want to get wet."

"C'mon, Summer," Marissa pleaded, "Let's go get in the pool."

"You know you want to," Seth teased.

"She _did_ bring her swimsuit," Marissa agreed, "We both did."

Summer figured it was her last night, what the hell. "Okay, but anybody who splashes me is dead," she said and looked at Seth. "You hear me, Cohen?"

They all laughed and headed out to the pool.

After they swam for a while (Summer mostly stood at the shallow end and leaned against the stairs), Ryan and Marissa ended up in the deep end holding each other.

"I can't believe Sum's actually leaving," Marissa said looking down into the water.

"I know," Ryan said sympathetically, "I'm sorry."

Marissa jumped up and wrapped her legs around Ryan so that he was holding her.

"Let's not think about it," she said as she leaned down and kissed him. He kissed her back as he held her up in the water, hoping that she would be able to deal with Summer leaving.

At the other end of the pool, Seth finally gave up on trying to get Summer into the water to have some fun.

"Fine, party pooper," he said. "See if I sleep next to you at the slumber party," he joked.

She looked at him sadly; she was going to miss him so much she couldn't even smile at his jokes. "Come here, Cohen," she said as she pulled him toward her. She put her arms around his neck and he wrapped his around her waist and they kissed, and kissed, and kissed, and kissed. They didn't stop until Marissa and Ryan were standing on the deck of the pool and Ryan cleared his throat.

"We, uh, we're going inside," he motioned at the poolhouse.

"Okay," Seth said. "We'll be there in a minute."

Once Ryan and Marissa were inside, they continued their long, passionate kiss.

"I'll never kiss anyone like this but you," Seth said, completely caught up in the moment.

Once they were all inside, they talked and joked and goofed around until they all fell asleep.

* * *

In the middle of the night, Summer woke Seth up and took his hand.

"Come with me," she said and guided him out to the pool again.

"Let's go skinny-dipping," she whispered, even though no one was around to hear.

Seth looked at her in shock. "Really?" he asked, still not believing his own ears.

Summer smiled and nodded as she pursed her lips.

"Okay, yeah," Seth happily agreed. "Wait, let me go make sure my parents aren't home yet."

He wandered around the side of the house and came back with a big goofy grin on his face. "All systems go," he said in a cocky manner.

Summer stripped down to just her panties, while Seth stared in amazement.

"This is so cool," he said gawking at her.

"Ugh! You, too, lover boy!" she said realizing he was still dressed.

"Okay, okay," he said as he peeled off his t-shirt and shorts and stood in front of Summer in just his boxers.

Summer grabbed her panties. "On the count of three," she said.

They counted to three, took off their underwear, smiled at each other, and jumped into the pool. This time, Summer didn't care about getting wet. She dove under the water and grabbed Seth, she splashed at him and laughed when he splashed back.

After they played for a while, Summer quieted down and pressed her body up against Seth's. He held her and they kissed, and when Summer told Seth she wanted to have sex one more time before she left, Seth jumped out of the pool and disappeared into the house within a matter of seconds. And another few seconds later, he reappeared with a condom and another big goofy grin. They made love in the pool, and both of them wished they never had to be apart, but they knew it was only a matter of a few more hours before they would be separated by the entire country.


	11. The Goodbye

"The Goodbye"

Note: I don't own the O.C.  
Someone from the past is back!! Julie learns a long-kept secret from her husband. Please review everyone. Thank you.

* * *

At the airport, Summer couldn't stop crying. Seth couldn't either. He hugged her and didn't let go for at least five minutes. He couldn't believe she was really leaving.

"Summer," her dad interrupted, "It's time to go."

"Final boarding call for flight 603, non-stop to Baltimore," they all heard over the P.A. system.

Summer let go of Seth and had to push him a little to get him to release her. "I love you," said teary-eyed, then whispered, "Wait for me."

She hugged Marissa, who was also crying, then looked at Ryan.

"See ya later, Chino," she said, trying to smile.

He surprised her by grabbing her and giving her a big hug. "We'll see you soon," he said, then stepped back.

"Bye, Sum," Marissa said through tears. She was sobbing by then, and Ryan pulled her in and held her shaking body against his chest.

Seth walked with Summer as far as they would let him and held onto her hand as long as he could while she walked away from him and onto the plane. His arm stayed outreached in mid air even after he lost hold of her hand. She followed her father, looking back at Seth until she couldn't see him anymore. His arm fell to his side as he watched Summer board the plane. It wasn't a bad dream, she was really leaving.

* * *

Seth moped around the house for days, then weeks. The only time he smiled was at 8:00pm when Summer called him every night before she went to sleep on the opposite coast. They talked about her new life in Baltimore, the new school she was attending, the way kids dressed in Baltimore, her new neighbors who had sex in their backyard and how it made her think of their last time together in the pool. Whenever Seth would try to talk about something that was going on in Newport, she would cut him off and change the subject, or just say she had to go and hang up the phone. It hurt too much for her to be reminded of the life she left behind. Seth tried to be understanding, but he missed having real conversations with his girlfriend.

* * *

Inside her beautiful new mansion, with gorgeous furniture and décor, and amazing art everywhere she looked, Julie Nichol was falling apart inside. She had overheard a conversation Caleb was having in his home office with one of his business associates. She couldn't make out everything they were saying, but she was pretty sure she got the idea from a few key phrases she heard: "We're going under…" We're looking at a lot of legal problems…" "We have no choice but to give them what they want…" "Our time is up…" "The Newport Group won't survive this…" The room was spinning, and Julie had to sit down before she fell. She was having trouble catching her breath when Caleb walked out of his office and into the living room.

"Julie, what's wrong?" he looked at her on the sofa holding her stomach.

"What- what's going on, Cal?" she managed to whimper.

"What do you mean?" he looked from her to his office and back to her. He realized she had been eavesdropping. "Julie, you've been sticking your nose where it doesn't belong. That was a private meeting."

"Cal!" she said as loud as she could, still trying to breathe normally. "What is…what does this mean? What will happen to … us?"

"Now Julie, you are overreacting. You don't know what you're talking about. Let's have some tea and try to relax a little.

"Damn it, Cal!" she yelled in full force, finally regaining her composure. "Tell me what the hell is going on this instant!"

Caleb took a deep breath and looked at the floor. He couldn't keep his financial problems from his wife any longer. He explained the terrible truth in all the gory details, giving Julie the whole story. And unlike with Jimmy, she listened intently, tears building up in her eyes until a single tear streamed down the right side of her face and she grasped the idea that she was going to be poor. Again.

* * *

Seth stared at his food while he pushed it around the plastic plate with his fork. He hadn't taken more than two bites of his school cafeteria lunch. Ryan and Marissa, who sat across the outdoor table, just looked at each other helplessly. They figured Seth would be doing better by now, almost a month after Summer left.

"Oh, Seth," Marissa said brightly, trying to boost his mood, "Summer says she might be able to make it back for spring break. And spring break is like, two weeks long at her school." She nodded, trying to cheer him up.

"Yeah," he said, barely looking up from his plate of mush, "Then what? Then she'll go back to Baltimore and I'll just miss her even more." He stood up and picked up his tray. "I better get to class," he said as he left.

He looked down at his plate as he slowly made his way around corners and through the array of tables. He had almost reached the garbage can to dispose of his food and tray when he crashed head on with someone else, who had been going much faster than he.

"Oww!" the girl's voice whined as she grabbed her knee and tried to rub the pain away.

Seth immediately dropped to the ground to pick up his mess. As he picked up his things he saw the girl's shoes- red Converse All-Stars, worn over black and white striped knee-high socks. As he looked upward, he saw her pink layered skirt, and he could only think of one girl she could be.

"Seth Cohen!" she said in a familiar voice, and he stood up until they were face to face.

Seth smiled for the first time in a long time. "Anna!"


	12. The Friend

"The Friend"

Note: I don't own The O.C. WILL SOMEONE PLEASE TELL ME if I need to say that in every chapter - it's getting tedious, so if I don't have to I won't. Let me know.  
Anna's back and Marissa finds out what's going on with Julie and Caleb.

* * *

"Anna!" Seth was shocked to see his old friend again. "Oh my God, Anna! What are you, uh, what are you doing here?!" The smile appeared to be stuck to his face.

"I..." she giggled as she tried to explain, "I'm back. I moved back to Newport Beach. We got settled last week, so…here I am," she was still surprised at their run-in. "I was looking for you yesterday, but I've been so…so busy, and I…I can't believe we ran into each other," she was still smiling, "It was like a bad sit-com or something."

"So you're back? Again, I mean," Seth had put his tray down on a table nearby and wasn't paying attention to everyone leaving the area and heading for class.

"Well, I guess it's time for class," Anna said looking around.

"Oh," Seth looked around as well, "Yeah, I guess."

"But I'll see you around," Anna said optimistically.

"Of course, I mean, you should call me."

"Yeah?" she asked with uncertainty in her voice. "Aren't you and, uh, Summer, like busy or…?"

"Uh, yeah, no, Summer, uh…It's a long story. We should hang out and catch up," Seth suggested.

Anna nodded with approval. "Okay."

"Okay," Seth said, "Call me after school."

Anna nodded and they almost ran into each other again as they maneuvered around each other and headed to class.

* * *

"Cohen residence, Seth at your service," Seth answered the phone. It was 8:00pm.

"Hey," his girlfriend's voice echoed through the phone, sounding a little glum.

"Summer," he sounded surprised as he looked up at the clock. "It's eight already? I, uh, I must have lost track... Of the time, how are you?" He stood up and walked into the kitchen to take the phone call, leaving Anna sitting on the living room couch.

* * *

Ryan and Marissa walked into Marissa's house to find Julie and Caleb yelling at each other.

"Why does any of this matter," Caleb yelled louder than either of them had ever heard him, "if you didn't marry me for my money?"

"That's not the point, Cal!" Julie screamed back, startling even Marissa, who had been hearing her mom scream for 17 years. "You lied to me, you manipulated me! This is all phony," she said much more quietly as she broke down and started crying. She fell back onto a loveseat and they both turned and noticed Ryan and Marissa standing in the doorway, shocked.

"What's going on?" Marissa asked as she walked into the living room.

"Nothing, Dear," Julie lied, wiping tears and smudged makeup from her face. "We're having a private conversation, so please..." she nodded toward the stairs as if she were asking Marissa to leave the room.

"Well," Marissa said still angry at her mother for all the events of the last year, "We'll leave, but if you keep shouting like that, your conversation will be heard around the whole neighborhood." She turned around and ran up the stairs, and Ryan followed.

* * *

Ten minutes into his conversation with Summer, Anna came into the kitchen.

"I'm gonna go," she said very quietly and pointed toward the door.

"No," Seth shook his head. "No, not you Summer, I was talking to Anna, she-"

"What?!?!" Summer's voice literally hurt Seth's ears it was so loud. "Anna's there?"

"Yeah, she-"

"Oh, oh I see, I see how it is. I'm gone less than two months and already Anna's back and in your house and God knows what else," Summer rambled irrationally.

Seth held up a finger to Anna and mouthed the words "Just a minute" as he walked onto the back patio. "What are you talking about? What, do you think I planned this? She moved back, Summer, like last week."

"Whatever," Summer was pissed off. "What's she doing there? Are you guys, like, studying?" Summer said sarcastically.

"You are getting all upset over nothing-"

"Whatever," she yelled again before she hung up the phone.

Seth stood there with his hand in the air, confused about what had just happened.

* * *

Up in Marissa's room, she and Ryan sat quietly for a few minutes before speaking. She had known something was going to go wrong with her mother's marriage, she just figured it would take a couple years to happen.

"I knew something like this was going to happen," she said looking off into space.

"I'm sure it's nothing," Ryan tried to comfort her.

She looked at him with doubt. "I have never seen my mother that upset before," she said, then thought about it. "Well, I guess I have..."

"Yeah," Ryan said nonchalantly, "It'll be okay."

She looked at him for a moment then smiled. "You're right," she said as she sat on his lap on her bed. They started to kiss when they heard the front door slam and glass shatter from somewhere. They both looked toward her bedroom door, and moments later, they heard a car screeching out of the driveway.

* * *

"I don't get it," Seth said.

"I don't either," Anna said, confused for a different reason. "She moved to Baltimore, doesn't she want you to be happy now that she's gone?" Anna walked up and stood right in front of Seth, smiling flirtatiously.

"What? No, we... no," Seth realized why Summer might be upset, then Anna realized why Seth was.

"Oh, are you guys still, you know, together?"

"I said I would wait for her," Seth said quietly, looking past Anna.

"Oh," Anna nodded.

After a brief awkward silence, Anna decided she should leave and Seth agreed. He had to call Summer back and try to straighten things out. But when he called, no one answered the phone. The second time he called, no one answered again. On his third try, a very-asleep sounding woman answered the phone in a groggy voice.

"Uh, hi. This is Seth... Calling for Summer. Is she, uh, is she there?" he figured the voice on the other end was her stepmother so he tried to be polite. But when the woman said she didn't know, Seth got impatient. "Well, this is kind of important so could you check?"

"Ugh! Fine, hold on," the woman said in a huffy manner. When she came back a few minutes later, she only had bad news. "She's not here, her car's gone," she advised him and promptly hung the phone up.


	13. The Revelation

"The Revelation"

Note: I don't own The O.C. but this chapter introduces some new characters that I DO own! I think...  
Someone is moving into the house next door, Marissa's old house and Marissa learns the reason for her mother's behavior of late. Please R&R, thanks!

* * *

Ryan and Marissa determined it had been Caleb who left in such a hurry and not her mother. When they went downstairs to check on Julie, she was drinking a scotch and sitting on the sofa crying softly.

"Mom?" Marissa asked in a small injured-child voice. She was genuinely worried for her mother.

Julie looked up. "I'm fine, honey. I'd rather not talk about this… I'd like to be alone right now. Why don't you two leave, go have some fun, okay?"

"But-" Marissa knew her mother was not fine.

"Go!" Julie interrupted, "Just... go..." she cried.

Marissa swung around and ran out of the house. Again, Ryan followed.

* * *

The next day, Sandy and Kirsten got home from work at almost the exact same time, but neither could get into the driveway because of four huge moving trucks blocking the entire area. They parked on the street, got out of their cars, exchanged looks of confusion, and walked up to the trucks to see if they could find out what was going on.

A tall, handsome dark-haired man in his early forties greeted them.

"Mr. and Mrs. Cohen?" he asked looking at a form he held in his hand.

"Yes, that's us," Sandy replied, still thoroughly confused. Kirsten glanced around, but couldn't figure out why all the trucks were there.

The man smiled. "Hi," he said as he reached out to shake Sandy's hand. "I'm Andrew Leeks, your new neighbor." He saw the uncertainty on both their faces and added, "I just yelled at these drivers, they're moving the trucks right away."

Sandy shook his hand and smiled, finally understanding what the mob of strangers was about. "It's nice to meet you, Andrew. I'm Sandy and this is Kirsten." The new neighbor shook Kirsten's hand as well.

"You should meet my wife, Clara," Andrew said to Kirsten. "And our kids, Evan and Lauren – well, they're around here somewhere."

They chatted for a while until the huge trucks were moved, then Sandy and Kirsten pulled their cars into the driveway.

* * *

"So someone finally bought the Coopers' house?" Seth asked his parents as they walked in.

"Looks that way," Sandy said setting down his briefcase.

"They seem like really nice people," Kirsten said.

"They do? You only met Andrew," Sandy teased. "Your mother has a crush on the new neighbor."

"I do not!" she laughed. "He's a nice,-"

"Handsome guy," Sandy finished, still teasing with his wife.

"Oh stop it," she said then turned to Seth. "So did you ever get a hold of Summer?"

"No," Seth said unhappily, "No one will answer the phone at the house, and Summer's new cell phone hasn't been turned on yet, so…"

"She'll call," Kirsten said reassuringly.

"Yeah," Seth agreed, but he wasn't sure she would. He couldn't stop picturing her in the arms of some rich, handsome jock from her new school, someone he thought she had been waiting to run to until Seth screwed up. And now, he'd screwed up.

* * *

Sandy, Kirsten and Seth were just sitting down for dinner when the doorbell rang.

"I'll get that," Kirsten said setting her napkin on the table.

She answered the door to a pretty woman holding a plate of cookies.

"I'm Clara," the woman said. She had shoulder length brown hair and beautiful brown eyes. "I know it kind of cheesy – greeting the new neighbors with cookies, but I bake, that's what I do, so…" she handed the plate to Kirsten.

"Oh, no that's – that's very nice. Thank you," Kirsten looked at the cookies. "These look great, thank you. Would you like to, uh, come in? Meet the rest of my family?"

The woman followed Kirsten into the dining room and Sandy and Seth put their forks down.

"This is Clara," Kirsten announced, "She's our new neighbor. And this," she held her hand out toward her family sitting at the table, "is my husband Sandy….and my son Seth."

"Hello," the woman said to the men. "I have two kids, Evan and Lauren. They're about your age. Well, Evan is 17 and Lauren is 16. We just moved here from Seattle, they spent their whole lives there and to be honest, aren't that happy about moving here. But Andrew was promoted to a position here in Newport, so here we are." She smiled and turned to Kirsten. "Your home is beautiful."

"Thank you," Kirsten was flattered.

"I'll let you get back to dinner – it looks amazing," Clara said.

"Oh," Kirsten blushed, "It's takeout. I don't, uh, cook."

"Well, I don't do much of anything but cook, so if you'd ever like a lesson or two, you know where I live," she said, and laughed along with Kirsten.

* * *

Ryan was having dinner with Marissa at her house. Julie had told her she had something important to discuss with her, and asked her to be home for dinner. Caleb was not home.

"So what is this all about?" Marissa asked her mother suspiciously.

"Well, I wanted this to be a private conversation, Maris," she called her daughter by her nickname.

"Anything you tell me is going to make it's way back to Ryan anyway, so I thought I'd just save myself the breath and have you tell both of us."

"Alright," she replied slowly. "It's about Caleb and me-"

"I knew it," Marissa interrupted angrily. "I knew this was going to happen, I should have never agreed to move in here!"

"What do you mean 'agreed'?" Julie asked, genuinely baffled.

"Never mind," she said looking down. "So what, you're getting a divorce? Again?" She emphasized the word 'again.'

"No!" Julie sounded offended. "Of course not! Cal, it turns out, has a lot less money than he led us to believe, so-"

"Than he led _you_ to believe, not me. I don't care about his money," Marissa said defiantly.

Julie rolled her eyes with impatience. "My point, Marissa, is that we will be moving. We can't afford to live in our home anymore, so we will be selling the house, and moving somewhere a little more….modest," she said, cringing a little.

Marissa didn't say anything, she just glared at her mother. Ryan was watching Marissa, unsure of what kind of outburst she might have. Finally, she just looked down and shook her head. "Whatever, Mom. You can do what you want, but if I move again, it's going to back in with Dad. I'm not going through this with you again."

"Marissa," He mother said in a pleading tone, "I need you. I need you to stick by me. I want us to be friends again. Like when we lived with Dad."

"How can we be friends?" Marissa was almost yelling. "After everything you've done! I never even wanted to be here in the first place!" She got up and ran upstairs.

This time, Ryan didn't follow her. He sat at the table and glared at Julie.

"What?" Julie asked, noticing his expression. Then she realized Ryan be helpful in understanding why Marissa was so upset. "Why did she move here if she hates me so much?"

Ryan thought for a moment, then decided Julie should know the truth about her husband. "She was bribed," he said flatly. "Caleb threatened to take back the money he gave to Mr. Cooper for the restaurant. She did it for him, not you," Ryan said then went upstairs.


	14. The Neighbors

"The Neighbors"

Note: I don't own the O.C, only my characters (the neighbors).  
Seth meets his new neighbor and so does Theresa. Ryan realizes things are changing.

* * *

Seth went outside to get some fresh air and try to call Summer again from his cell phone. He got the answering machine and hung up the phone, deciding he had already left enough messages for Summer. He noticed a girl sitting on the stairs of the old Cooper house. She was dressed up, wearing a jacket and holding a purse, like she was waiting for a ride somewhere. She noticed him too and said hello.

"Hi," Seth walked over to her. "I'm Seth Cohen. I live there," he said pointing to his house.

The girl smiled. She had dirty blonde hair pulled up in a ponytail and very light skin. "I'm Lauren," she said. "Lauren Leeks. And I live….here," she pointed at her house, the house Marissa Cooper grew up in.

"Are you going to Harbor?" Seth asked.

"Yeah," she nodded, "I start Monday."

"That's cool," Seth nodded, not knowing what else to say. "So, uh, you going somewhere?"

"No," she said giggling. "I don't know anyone here, so I'm just sitting here wishing I had somewhere to go."

"Yeah, I used to do that ALL the time," he admitted.

"So what do you do now?"

"Um, well, I like to sail, or hang out on the pier, or, you know, just…hang out with my friends. Not much really since my girlfriend left. She moved to Baltimore, so…"

"That sucks," Lauren said. "I left my boyfriend in Seattle."

They talked for a while, then Seth invited Lauren to come over, and they watched TV and got to know each other a little bit better.

* * *

Ryan walked into Marissa's room, where she sat on the end of her bed crying.

"I told her," Ryan said right away.

"What? What did you tell her?" She looked at Ryan's face and knew. "What!? How could you?" She screamed. "That wasn't your place to tell her!"

"She needed to know," Ryan said. "You needed for her to know, so you can get on with your life and stop dwelling on all the problems you and her have."

"My problems with my mother are none of your business!" Marissa stormed out of the room, leaving Ryan standing there in a daze. He was tired of all the drama between Marissa and Julie, and nothing he did seemed to help.

* * *

"So, what about your brother?" Seth asked Lauren. They had gone from watching TV to playing video games, which Lauren was not good at, but she humored Seth anyway.

"Evan? Uh, I don't know, he….well, he'll be going to Harbor with us."

"Hmm, that's very vague, Lauren" Seth joked.

"He's morally opposed to private school, so he went to public school in Seattle, but Mom said he had to go to Harbor here because..." she didn't say why. "He really didn't want to move," she offered instead.

"Hm," Seth said, "Is he-" he started to ask something, but his cell phone rang and his heart jumped as he fumbled in his pocket for his phone. He was in such a hurry, he didn't even look at the caller ID before answering.

"Hello?" he asked anxiously.

"I need a ride home," Ryan answered.

"Oh," Seth said with disappointment. "Where are you?"

* * *

Lauren rode with Seth to go pick up Ryan, and she crawled into the backseat when they got there. Her eyes widened when she saw Ryan.

"Hi," Ryan said. "New neighbor?"

"Yeah," she bit her bottom lip as she watched him get into the car.

Seth noticed her attraction to him and tried to interrupt her staring.

"This is Lauren, her brother is Evan. Haven't met him yet."

"Hi," Ryan said and smiled at the new girl politely.

* * *

When they got back, Lauren went home and Seth went to his room to try Summer again. Ryan went to go check on Theresa and say goodnight, but when he walked into the poolhouse without knocking, she wasn't alone. She and a light-haired guy about their age were sitting on her bed playing with Theresa's baby, Samantha.

They both looked up when he barged in.

"Oh, hi," said. "I, uh, I'm sorry." He started to back out of the room, but Theresa spoke.

"It's okay," she laughed, "Come on in." Ryan walked in and sat on the chair at the end of the bed. "This is Evan," Theresa informed Ryan. "Evan, Ryan," she introduced them.

"Hey man," they said to each other at the same time. Evan went back to playing with Samantha, and Theresa stood up to talk to Ryan.

"Is everything okay?" she asked him.

"Yeah, uh, yeah, fine. I just wanted to say goodnight."

"Okay. Goodnight," Theresa said.

She went back to playing with Samantha with Evan, and Ryan left feeling like the new neighbors were going to be a lot more than just neighbors.

* * *

Jimmy walked out of his apartment at 7:00 on Saturday morning. He was on his way to the airport to pick up Hailey from her trip to Hawaii when he saw Marissa's car in the parking lot. He walked over to the car, worried and confused, and saw Marissa asleep on the backseat. She was curled up in a ball and had no blanket over her. Jimmy tapped on the window and woke Marissa.

"Dad," she said opening the door, still hazy from sleep.

"Marissa, what - what are you doing here?" he reached in to hug her and make sure she was alright.

"I'm fine, I just – I needed a place to sleep and – I don't know, I just – I ended up here. I'm sorry if that's not okay," she started to apologize.

"Marissa, you should have come up, and of course – of course you can come here anytime – anytime you want."

"It was late when I got here," Marissa said getting out of the car. "After 2am."

"I don't care what time it is, I am always here for you. What's going on?" he asked, then watched Marissa as she started to cry again. "Is it your mother?" Marissa nodded, wiping tears from her face. "Okay, uh, I have to, well, we have to go pick up Hailey from the airport, so – so you should uh, come with me and we can talk about it."

Marissa hesitated at first, but then realized she really needed an understanding adult to talk to, so she agreed.


	15. The Confession

"The Confession"

Note: I do not own The O.C. or any orginal characters from the show.   
In this chapter, we get to know Lauren a little better and Marissa comes clean. Please R&R! :)

* * *

Seth woke up early to the sound of moving trucks beeping and hand trucks moving boxes. Ryan was sitting in his room waiting for him to wake up. Seth let out a frightened sound, almost like a scream, when he saw Ryan.

"What the hell, dude?!?!" Seth grabbed his chest, "You scared me."

"I need to talk to you. It's Marissa, I don't know what to do. She's falling apart and getting mad at me and just acting…..I don't know, I think she may be drinking again."

"Really? Oh my God, what are you gonna do?" Seth asked, oblivious to the fact that Ryan didn't know and that's why he had come for help.

"What can I do? She's a big girl, she knows what she's doing."

"Yeah, but she's also your girlfriend. And when she needs your help, even if she doesn't want it, you have to be there for her," Seth said, surprising himself at his insight.

"That's very wise, Seth," Ryan said, repeating one of Seth's own lines, as he got up and left the room.

"I do what I can…" Seth said curling back up in bed. BANG! CRASH! He heard the trucks again and pulled the blanket over his head. BEEP...BEEP...BEEP…He could sleep through some noises, but that incessant beeping was not one of them. He groaned as he got out of bed and headed downstairs.

* * *

Ryan went to Marissa's house, but her car was still gone. He drove by her father's house and found her car, but not her. Jimmy's car was missing, so he figured Marissa went somewhere with Jimmy. When he wasn't able to find her, he decided to go home and wait for her to return his calls.

* * *

When Ryan got home, Lauren was walking up the Cohen's driveway.

She spun around and saw Ryan. "Hi there," she said, grinning a little bit.

"Hey," Ryan said.

"I was just coming to see if you and Seth wanted to go down to the pier, or maybe the mall, or – I don't care really, I just wondered if you guys would show me around.

Ryan thought about Marissa, and knew if he stayed home, he would just sit there and think about Marissa some more. "Sure, yeah. Let me ask Seth," he said opening the front door. "C'mon in."

She followed him in but waited in the foyer while Ryan found Seth in the kitchen.

"Hey, man," he said to a groggy-looking Seth. "Uh, the new girl, um, Lauren – she wants us to show her around, go down the pier. What do you think?"

"Hmm…" Seth responded, sipping his coffee.

"It'll take our minds off of them," he said, referring to their respective girlfriends, with whom their minds were occupied.

Seth looked at Ryan and nodded. "You are right, my man," he got up and put his coffee down. "Give me 5 minutes," he said as he ran up the stairs to get dressed.

Ryan left a note for Sandy and Kirsten, and went back to tell Lauren Seth would be down in just a minute.

* * *

Jimmy's face was pale. Marissa had cried all the tears inside her. They were sitting in the airport waiting for Hailey and Marissa had just finished telling Jimmy everything about Julie and Luke and all the new problems with Caleb.

"Wow," Jimmy said in a sigh.

"Yeah," Marissa nodded.

Jimmy reached out and took a hold of Marissa's hand. "This is all…going to be okay," he comforted her, "We'll figure this all out together. You – you shouldn't be worrying about…this kind of stuff, you know? I'll talk to your mother, and I'm sure once her dirty little secret is out, she won't have a problem with you coming back to live with me."

"But I don't want to intrude on, you know, you and….Hailey."

"Honey, you will always come first to me," Jimmy said, rubbing Marissa's shoulder.

"Thanks, Dad." Marissa looked over at her father and saw his face light up like she had never seen before. He had something in his sights as he stood up.

Hailey came running up to Jimmy and threw her arms around him. "Oh my God, I missed you so much!" she basically yelled.

"Oh, I missed you too," he replied pulling back to look at her face. Then they kissed. For a long time, and Marissa realized there may not be enough room for her in her father's life either.

* * *

Lauren wasn't polished looking like Marissa or Summer. She wore a denim miniskirt and a plain pink tank top and had her blonde hair pulled up in a high ponytail. She wore a little bit of lip gloss, but no other makeup. Still, she was very pretty, Seth thought as the three of them made their way down to the pier. Ryan rode his bike and Lauren attempted to ride Seth's skateboard. She wasn't very successful, but Seth held her hand while she glided along, steadying her so she wouldn't fall. They all laughed as she screamed every time she lost balance. They got down to the pier and had corn dogs and lemonade while Lauren told them about Seattle. She talked about her old school, her boyfriend, her father's job in Seattle, and trips she took to Canada every summer to go camping.

"I hated camping, but my friends would talk me into in every year," Lauren told them. In all the time she talked about Seattle, she seem to skirt around the subject of her brother. But neither of the boys asked anyway.

"Hey," a familiar voice came from behind them. They turned around to see who it was. "It's my two favorite guys in Newport," Anna said.

Seth introduced Anna to Lauren, and then excused himself to talk to Anna.

* * *

Jimmy dropped Hailey off at the apartment, which was now their apartment, and took Marissa to Julie's house.

They went inside and Julie and Caleb were in the kitchen, obviously arguing about something.

"What's going on?" Julie asked when she saw Jimmy.

"Well, we should probably talk," Jimmy said, then looked at Caleb, "Alone."

"This is my house, Jimmy-" Caleb started to say.

"And this is my family," Marissa interrupted, shocking everyone. Then she glared at Julie. "I doubt you want him to hear this, anyway."

Julie panicked. What was Marissa planning on talking about the Caleb shouldn't hear? The stripper she almost went home with? Luke?

"Cal, honey, just give us a minute, hm?" she feigned composure.

When he left the room, taking his coffee and newspaper with him, he gave Jimmy a dirty look as he passed by. Once he was gone, Julie's apprehension reappeared.

"What is going on? What are you two trying to do to my marriage?"

"This isn't about you, Julie. This is about your daughter, in case you've forgotten," Jimmy said, looking more serious than ever.

"Cut the crap, Jimmy. What the hell do you want?"

"I know about Luke. I want Marissa back, she belongs with me. This is not an argument, this is what's happening."

"Marissa," Julie's tone softened and she forced a slight smile, "you don't really want to leave, do you?"

Marissa scoffed at her mother's phoniness. "Yes, I do. I can't stand living here, I never could. I just want to go back to living with Dad." Her eyes started to tear up, but she quickly wiped her sadness away. "I hate Caleb for what he did to me and I hate you for not knowing," she said calmly, then turned and walked toward the door of the room. "I'll get my things," she said without stopping.


	16. The Reunion

"The Reunion"

Note: I do not own The O.C. or it's characters...  
SPECIAL NOTE: This chapter has kind of a "dark" twist, so beware.

* * *

Seth and Anna walked along the pier.

"Look," Anna said, "I'm really sorry if I caused any problems between you and Summer. I'll admit that I thought you were single. I came over to see if there would be any chemistry between us. I didn't realize-"

"It's okay," Seth cut her off. "Summer hasn't returned my phone calls since then, but maybe it's for the better." He stopped and looked at Anna. She had such great style, he thought, and she was so cool. He wondered if they would have any chemistry this time around. They leaned up against the railing on the pier, and Anna put her hand against Seth's chest.

"I missed you, Seth," Anna spoke quietly as her hand moved up to his neck and she pulled him toward her. He leaned in and placed his hand gently on her back, and they kissed.

* * *

Lauren asked Ryan about his girlfriend, and he started to explain what was going on with her. But he couldn't, he didn't know what was going on. She was so unpredictable lately, and always upset about something. They hadn't had sex in such a long time, Ryan could barely remember what she looked like naked.

"Let's talk about something else," he suggested.

"Okay," Lauren said staring into his eyes. She was in such awe of Ryan she couldn't help but stare. She was so intrigued by his background, just like Marissa had been when he first came to Newport Beach. She thought he was gorgeous, and interesting, and funny at just the right moments. She had a crush on Ryan, and thoughts of the boyfriend she had left in Seattle so recently were on the back burner.

* * *

Jimmy started the car while Marissa stuffed the last of her things in the back. Her mother was standing on the porch, a sad look in her eyes, but defiance in her body language. She stood with her arms crossed and her nose up in the air.

"You're making a mistake, Marissa," she said to her daughter as she opened the car door to get in.

"No, Mom, you made the mistake. When you chose money over your family." She got in the car and they drove away.

* * *

Seth and Anna pulled away from each other and Anna was smiling. There had definitely been more chemistry between them than the last time they kissed. But Seth just shook his head.

"No, no, no, this is wrong. I'm sorry, I can't. Anna, you are an amazing girl, but I'm in love with Summer. I have to talk to her," he finished as he took Anna's hand in both of his hands, then let go.

He walked up to Ryan and Lauren and told Ryan he had to go, he needed to find Summer and talk to her, tell her he loved her and didn't want to be without her.

After he jumped on his skateboard and took off, Ryan thought about Marissa.

"I should go, too, he told Lauren.

She simply nodded in understanding as he hopped on his bike and rode away.

"Those boys are devoted," Anna said disappointedly as she sat down with Lauren.

"Tell me about it," she smiled, still thinking about Ryan.

* * *

Julie went back into her house, feeling guilty. She had given up her family for money. She divorced Jimmy because he lost all his money, then she married Caleb, thinking he could give her a better life because of his money. It was poetic justice, she thought, that now Caleb was close to being broke and Jimmy had all the money he would ever need.

Caleb was waiting for her in the living room. "What's all this about?" he asked her.

"I think you know what this is about," she said coldly. "You bribed and blackmailed my family, and now my own daughter hates me."

"I did no such thing-"

"I know, Cal! I know what you did to get Marissa here. How could you possibly think that wouldn't come out?"

"Julie, I did what was best for OUR family. One day you will realize why I did what I did." He walked off, not seeming to care what had just happened.

* * *

Seth called Summer's house 12 times in a row. When he got the answering machine, he hung up and called again. Finally, Summer's drugged up stepmother answered the phone. She still sounded half-asleep.

"Hello?"

"Hello!" Seth said, happy that he finally got someone on the line. "I need to talk to Summer! Please! This is Seth, tell her I need to talk to her."

"Hold on," the woman replied.

Seth held on for 5 minutes, then 10. He was about to hang up when Summer's dad came on the line.

"Seth," he said sternly, "Summer isn't here."

"Well, where is she? I've been calling for three days now. I need to talk to her. Is her cell phone on yet?"

"Yes, but it's right here beside me. She doesn't have it with her." He was being very vague, not giving Seth any real answers.

"But I need to talk to her. Please, Mr. Roberts. I know you don't care much for me, but I love Summer, and she loves me. At least she did…" he trailed off.

Her father sighed deeply on the phone. "Summer ran away, Seth. Three days ago, with no note or phone call. She's missing, and the authorities believe she probably didn't make it wherever she was going," he started to sob, and Seth's heart fell. "It was so late at night, and she had nothing with her," he continued to cry in Seth's ear.

Seth got off the phone and couldn't focus on anything. He stumbled around his house and finally made it to the front door, then fell backward inside the house. He crawled back into the living room. "Authorities believe she didn't make it…" He remembered what her father had said, and curled up into a ball and let it all out. All his worrying and frustration from the last few days came rushing out of his body in long sobs as he cried and cried until he couldn't cry anymore.


	17. The Compassion

Note: I don't own The O.C. In fact, I do NOT own anything pertaining to or dealing with or based on or related to The O.C. or any of it's characters.  
Okay, more darkness in this chapter (sorry, next chapter is happier though) Ryan has unexpected feelings and Seth hits a low point. Please R&R! Thank you.

* * *

Marissa answered the door at her dad's house. It was Ryan.

"Can we talk?" he asked.

"I moved back," she said, not inviting him in.

"Really?" he smiled, hoping this meant all her issues with her mother would end soon.

"You shouldn't have told her," Marissa said, referring to Caleb's blackmail.

"No, I shouldn't have," Ryan said, getting frustrated. "You should have, a long time ago."

Before she could say anything, he turned around and left. She called after him, but kept going. She lived with her dad now, where she wanted to be, and Ryan had helped. But she didn't appreciate his help, nor did she realize how much anguish she had put him through over this. Right then, Ryan needed a break. From Marissa, from her mother, from all the other issues. He went home to see Theresa, knowing that she could always calm him down and bring him back to his sanity.

* * *

Seth found his way back into the kitchen, then the liquor cabinet. He grabbed the first bottle he could, not caring what it was. He took a huge gulp, and held back a gag. He did it again, holding his hand over his mouth so he wouldn't throw up. He continued until the half-empty bottle was nearly gone, then he threw the bottle into the sink, shattering the glass. Seth had never drank much, and that half bottle of liquor was enough to get even the most experienced drinkers, like Marissa, drunk and passed out. But Seth had rage inside him and he didn't pass out. He got a surge of energy and left the house in search of something, but he didn't know what.

* * *

A few minutes later, Ryan pulled his bike up to the house and went in the front door. He walked past the study, and noticed Layla, the nanny, feeding the baby Samantha.

Damn it, he thought, Theresa was probably out shopping with Kirsten. It was their new hobby; they went to the mall together nearly every weekend.

"Where's Theresa?" he asked Layla, "Is she out with Kirsten?"

"No," she replied quietly, not wanting to disturb the hungry baby, "Mr. and Mrs. Cohen are both working today. Theresa's in the poolhouse, but-"

He didn't let her finish. He quickly made his way to the back door and around the pool to Theresa's living space. Without thinking, he flung the door open. "Theresa?"

Theresa and Evan were sitting on her bed, their arms around each other, kissing softly.

"Oh, oh God, I'm – I'm sorry," he said as he backed out of the room and closed the door. He stood there, embarrassed for a moment, then turned to leave.

"Hey," Theresa said coming out of the poolhouse. She closed the door behind her. "What's wrong? You seem…I don't know, are you okay?"

"No," Ryan shook his head. "It's just, I – I don't know…everything….. What's going on with that guy, are you seeing him?" Theresa could hear a hint of jealousy in his voice.

"Ryan," she said sensibly, "What's really going on? Is it Marissa?"

His hand on his hip, Ryan looked up from the ground and nodded.

"Wait here," She said before disappearing back into the poolhouse. When she reappeared, Evan was with her.

"See ya later," he said as he kissed Theresa's face, right next to her ear. She just looked at him and smiled.

"Come on in," she said to Ryan. "We'll talk."

* * *

Seth was drunk. He was very drunk as he wandered in and out of shops and restaurants. He still didn't know what he was looking for and he wasn't finding it anywhere in Newport. He stumbled along the beach and fell to his knees. He thought he would never be able to cry again after all the tears he shed at his house. Summer was gone, he thought, and there was no reason for anything anymore. He cried again, as much as he had before. Parents pulled their kids away from him on the beach. Other teenagers whispered and pointed. Women said "poor thing" as they passed by and the men with them said "freak."

* * *

After Ryan spent half an hour venting to Theresa about his problems with Marissa, she spent another half hour comforting him, telling him it would be alright, explaining that women see that kind of thing as a betrayal, but she would get over it.

"What if _I_ can't?" he asked. "Get over it, you know?"

"She's going through a tough time," Theresa said.

"She's always going through a tough time," Ryan said bitterly.

"She needs you, though. Even if she won't admit it, you have to be there, on the sidelines, waiting. If you really want to make it work, you just have to wait." Ryan had once been the love of Theresa's life, or so she thought at the time. Maybe he still was, but she knew he needed good sound advice and not an escape. She had given him that escape from Marissa once before and didn't want to make the mistake again.

Ryan smiled. "How do you always know what to say?"

"I just know you," she replied, a sly smile taking over her lips.

Ryan stared at her voluptuous lips and remembered the neighbor who had been kissing those lips a little while ago. "So you and Evan…"

"I don't know," she responded to the question he hadn't even asked yet. "We just…really like each other. We have a lot in common."

"Like what?" Ryan asked skeptically. "He's just another rich kid."

"There's more to him than that. I can't really get into it, but everyone has a past, no matter what kind of money they come from."

Ryan chuckled at Theresa's dreamy grin. "You gonna tell me what that means?"

"No," she said laughing at him. They playfully pushed each other and Ryan grabbed all of Theresa's massive hair and pulled it up behind her. Their faces were less than an inch apart before they both realized their proximity to each other.

"Hm," Ryan cleared his throat as he let her hair down and backed away. "Sorry."

"No, it's okay," Theresa said fumbling for words. "I guess some things will never be the same."

"I guess so," Ryan said, still looking at Theresa's lips. He wished that even though he wasn't kissing them, no one else would either. He didn't want Theresa to be lonely, but he didn't want to have to see her with someone else, after all they'd been through together. He knew he had to let her live her life, he just wished he didn't have to watch.

* * *


	18. The Miracle

Note: Okay, I do NOT own The O.C. or anything blah blah blah The O.C. It's not mine. It's just not damnit.

Summary: Seth comes back to reality and Ryan learns about his own will. This chapter is much happier than the previous two. Please review, thanks!!!

* * *

Seth was finally picking himself up off the ground of the beach, his clothes and hair covered in sand, his eyes red from crying and drinking. He looked like a mess. But she still recognized him.

"COHEN!" he heard the penetrating scream from the pier. "COHEN!" It almost hurt his ears from that far away, and everyone on the beach was staring at her.

He looked up and tried to make out the figure in the distance. But he didn't need to. There was only one person who called him by his last name, and there she was, screaming it at the top of her lungs.

"Summer!" he yelled back, but his voice was weak and distorted. "Summer, is that you?"

"Cohen," she screamed running toward him now.

"Oh my God! Summer," he yelled back as he started running to her. He fell down two times on the way, but they finally met on the sand and threw their arms around each other. He pushed away so he could look at her face and make sure it was really her. It was, she was there and she was alive. Her clothes were dirty, her shirt was even ripped a little at the shoulder, and her hair was knotted up in a messy bun. She had very little makeup on, and what she was wearing looked days old. She looked like crap, but she was there.

"Your dad – your dad said," he stopped to take a few deep breaths, "he said you were dead." Seth started crying again, this time out of relief and the memory of the fear he felt a short time ago.

"Oh my God I have to call him," Summer said. "I've been on a bus for like, three days, it was disgusting. I had no way to call him, or you, or anyone." Summer stopped talking and looked down.

"What? What's wrong?" Seth asked, panic in his voice. Nothing could go wrong now, please, he begged the higher powers.

"Anna," was all Summer could say.

Seth shook his head. "No, no Anna. No anybody but you Summer."

She smelled his breath, and made a sour face. "Are you drunk, Cohen?"

He laughed. "Well, let's just say I need a nap as much as you need a shower."

"Uh!" she hit him with her bag, then put her arms around his waist. "Take me to your house."

"Yes, ma'am," he said, and they walked off together, right after they held each other in a tight hug, just to make sure it was real.

* * *

Ryan was laying on his bed reading. Marissa was angry with him, Theresa was maybe seeing someone, Seth hadn't been around much, and to top it all off, the book he was reading was boring. He had just sighed and set it down next to him when he heard a faint knock at the door. He hesitated for a moment before getting up to answer it.

"Hi," Marissa said quietly as he opened the door.

"Hey," he said, stepping out of the way so she could come in. "How are you?" He was always concerned about her. That was one of the things that frustrated him about their relationship – he felt like he was always worrying.

"I'm okay," she said pulling a tuft of hair behind her ear while she looked at the floor. "I guess I wanted to apologize," she said, finally looking up at him.

"You don't have to-" he started to say, but she cut him off. And he was glad she interrupted, because honestly, he did want an apology. He deserved one.

"Yes I do. I know I've been making you miserable lately with all the trouble I've been having with – well, everything……" She tried to find the right words. "Look, I don't know how else to say this, so I'm sorry. I'm sorry for putting my problems first, I'm sorry for being so narrow-minded lately, I'm sorry for, you know, all of it. I know you've been trying to help and I'm sorry for yelling at you, but I just really wish you hadn't told my mom about...Caleb and..."

Ryan realized the apology he was receiving was not completely sincere. Marissa just wanted to get past this fight, but didn't necessarily think she owed an apology. After all, it was her mother, and her business, that Ryan blabbed about. But Ryan felt differently. Marissa was miserable, and therefore making him miserable, because she was stuck in a position she didn't want to be in. Ryan tried to help her out of it, and Marissa didn't understand why.

"I had to. You're always sad, or angry. I didn't want to see you like that anymore." Ryan realized they would either have to agree to disagree, or keep fighting. He wasn't sure he was ready to give up his virtue on this one though.

* * *

Kirsten stood over the kitchen sink, horrified. The broken liquor bottle stared up at her, taunting her, telling her that one of the boys in her home had been drinking and throwing things in rage. Her first thought was that it was Ryan, but she had just seen him. He was a little down, but not angry or intoxicated. Then she became sick with worry. That only left Seth, and she hadn't seen him all day.

"Hey, you," Sandy said walking into the room where his wife stood shaking.

When she didn't answer, he looked up from the mail he was reading. "What is it – What's wrong?" He came up beside her and looked at the broken glass in the sink. "Who did that? Kirsten, what's going on?"

"I think it was Seth," she said, barely above a whisper.

"Oh, no," he started to disagree, but then stopped. "Really?" Sandy was surprised. "Where is he?" When Kirsten just shrugged, Sandy picked the phone up off of the counter and started to dial Seth's number.

They heard the ring of his cell phone coming closer and closer until it was right behind them in the kitchen.

They turned around and Sandy slowly set the phone down in front of him. Kirsten let out a small gasp and held her hand over her mouth.

In front of them stood their son, dirty and red-eyed, looking as though he had been trampled by a herd of elephants. Next to him stood his girlfriend, who had moved to Baltimore just months ago. She too, looked to be falling apart, with filthy, torn clothes and chaotic hair, half pulled back and half falling down.

"Oh my God," Kirsten and Sandy said at the same time.


	19. The Secret

Chapter: The Secret

Note: I do not own The O.C. or any of its characters or anything O.C.-ish at all.

Summary: Sandy does the right thing, Evan keeps a secret and Seth worries...again.

* * *

"Knock, knock," the voice came from outside the poolhouse, while he also really knocked on the door.

Theresa opened the door to find Evan, holding a single flower. His tan skin and light hair shimmered in the sunset, and his blue eyes reminded her of Ryan.

She looked at him with one eyebrow raised and a slight smile on her lips. "You picked that from the Cohen's yard, didn't you?" She laughed at him as he mocked a sad face and looked down. "That's okay," she said, "but next time, pick it from your own yard." She pulled him inside by his shirt and kissed him.

He went directly to Samantha, and looked disappointed to see that she was sleeping.

"You like me too, right? Not just my daughter, I hope," she teased.

He smiled, but she could tell he didn't think it was funny. "I like you a lot," he said seriously. He looked at Theresa, and a sad expression took over his face. "Look, I turn 18 in June, and as soon as I do, I'm moving back to Seattle." He got up and set the flower on Theresa's bed and walked out of the poolhouse. He was really upset about something, but Theresa had no idea what.

* * *

"I should go," Marissa said, realizing they weren't making up; they were just getting deeper into the argument. 

Ryan didn't stop her, and she left. They were both right in their own ways, but neither wanted to give the other any slack. Marissa felt strongly about being her own person and not having Ryan fight her battles for her. Ryan felt strongly that Marissa should take action and do something about the aspects of her life that made her unhappy, instead of making everyone around her miserable too. He sat back down on his bed and tried to read again.

* * *

"What in the hell is going on?" Sandy asked the young couple standing in his kitchen. 

Seth started to say something, but Summer cut in. "I'm so sorry! I couldn't do it…living in…" she made a disgusted face, "Baltimore. Newport is my home, I need to be here," she finished, and started sobbing in front of the Cohens. Seth put his arm around Summer's shoulder and pulled her into a comforting hug.

"I need to call your father," Sandy said picking up the phone. He handed it to Summer and she dialed the number. Sandy took it back and it rang and rang and rang. Finally, Summer's father picked up.

"Hello?" he sounded as thought he was in poor health.

"Neil? This is Sandy Cohen, Seth's father…" he said as he walked out of the room to have his conversation in private, but not before giving Seth and Summer an ashamed look on his way out.

"Oh, you poor thing," Kirsten said rushing to Summer's side and touching the torn collar of her shirt. "Oh!" She smelled Summer's 3-day-old scent and stepped back. "No offense, but you need a shower, honey."

Summer's laugh made its way through her tear-stained cheeks and Kirsten led her upstairs.

* * *

Theresa stood at the door of the Leek house next door waiting for someone to answer. She had already knocked twice and had been waiting for a few minutes. She was just about to leave when the door opened slowly. 

"Hi," Evan said, stepping outside.

"I actually just came to bring your jacket," she said handing him a black hooded sweatshirt. "And maybe also to find out why you….I don't know, left in such a hurry." She smiled to try to lighten the mood, but it didn't seem to work.

"I just don't want to get attached to anyone," he said point-blank. "I'm leaving in a few months, so…" He just nodded, as if he had explained something.

"Okay," Theresa said, slowly backing away. "Good luck."

"Wait, don't…" he murmured. She stopped, but when he looked at the ground unable to say anything further, she left. He stood on the porch and watched her, wishing he could tell her what he wanted to tell her.

* * *

Caleb sat in his office alone, looking at some files on his desk, when Julie stormed in unannounced. 

"I'm on my way to see an attorney, Cal. I'm going to take you for every cent I can possibly squeeze out of you," she threatened as she sat down on the other side of his desk.

"It was always about money to you, wasn't it?" He asked calmly, not bothered by her intimidation tactics.

"Don't you dare turn this on me, Caleb Nichol! I am not the one who resorted to lying, and cheating, and blackmailing to get…" she couldn't think of what he would have gained by his lowly schemes.

"You," he finished her thought, "to get you and to make you happy. That's all I ever wanted, Juju."

She tried not to believe him. She stuck her nose in the air and looked away from him, but he was right. The more she thought about it, he did what he did to be with her. And to please her. He wanted to sell the restaurant to make enough money to keep her happy for the rest of her life. He threatened Marissa because he knew Julie had wanted her to live with them. Maybe he did really love her, maybe he wasn't so terrible for what he'd done after all.

* * *

Sandy came back into the kitchen with a distraught look on his face. "That girl's father thought she was dead!" 

"So did I," Seth said, looking at the glass-filled sink.

"Ohhh," Sandy said, realizing why Seth had been drinking.

"So what did he say?" Seth asked timidly, wondering how he would live without Summer after this ordeal.

"Not much," Sandy explained. "He was just…completely overcome with emotion. I can't even imagine what that must be like. He did say that he would be on a plane to Newport in the morning."

Seth's heart sank. Summer's dad was coming to get her and take her back to Baltimore, he thought. He had to do something immediately, he couldn't let that happen.


	20. The Tension

"The Tension"

Note: I don't own The O.C. (cause I'm sure you were wondering lol) or any of its characters.  
I'm having such a hard time with this formatting - I don't know why it has to be so difficult, but whatever. Sorry about the funny dots everywhere. Grrr.  
Summary: Ryan and Marissa have a hard time connecting and Seth plots and plans... Hope you like! Please review.  
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* * *

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Ryan heard two women's voices in the hallway and popped his head out the door to see what was going on.

"Thank you, Mrs. Cohen," Summer said taking a towel from Kirsten.

Ryan quickly pulled back into his room, shocked.

He picked up his phone to call Marissa, then set it back down. She probably didn't want to hear from him right now, he thought. Then again, she'd really want to know about this. He dialed the number and sat down on his bed, peeking out the door again.

"Hello?" Marissa answered.

"Hey, it's me," Ryan said and waited for her response.

"Yeah, I know," she said abruptly. "Caller ID. What do you want?"

"I just – I thought you should know…" he lost his train of thought, thinking about how displeased she sounded.

"What?" Marissa demanded.

"Uh – uh, Summer," he said, trying to put together a coherent sentence. "Summer's here."

"What? Summer's there? Where? At the Cohens'?" Marissa's voice was quick and eager.

"Yeah, I just saw her with Kirsten."

"Oh my God! Well, I should – I should come over then," she half-stated and half-asked.

"Yeah, no, definitely. You should."

They hung up, and Ryan glanced out into the hallway again to see if he could tell what was going on.  
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* * *

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Julie sat across from Caleb silently. She didn't know what to say to him. She was still angry, but beginning to understand his underhanded way of accomplishing things.

"Julie, I love you. I asked you to be my wife, and I meant it. I want to spend the rest of my life with you, and I want you to be happy. One day you will understand my logic."

Julie nodded, and stood up to leave.

"Where are you going now?" Caleb asked, dreading her answer. If she was still going to see an attorney, he thought, he would end up an old, lonely, penniless man.

"Home," she said softly, almost smiling back at him as she walked out of his office.  
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* * *

.Seth was standing in the hallway when Ryan came out this time.

"Hey, man, what's going on?" He asked Seth.

"Uh, nothing," he said, obviously trying to hide something. "Summer came back and she's taking a shower…"

Ryan nodded at the incomplete answer.

"Just, you know…waiting for the bathroom," Seth said without looking away from the bathroom door.

Ryan looked down the hall both ways and raised one eyebrow. "There's like, two other bathrooms on this floor, man."

"Yeah, I know," Seth said. "I just – I like this one. It's got the cool….lighting."

Ryan looked confused but nodded anyway.

"So I called Marissa, told her Summer was here," Ryan told Seth.

"You did what?" Seth said, finally turning toward Ryan. "Oh, God, Marissa's gonna be here? She's gonna make such a huge deal, I'll never get Summer alone to tell her….nevermind, man. Forget about it."

Ryan headed downstairs to find someone who made more sense than Seth, and Seth continued waiting intently outside the bathroom Summer was showering in. He had to talk to her first, to tell her about his plan.

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* * *

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Seth jumped when Summer opened the bathroom door. He had been waiting for what seemed like an eternity, and had started to drift off. Summer came out of the bathroom wearing only a towel and Seth's eyes widened.

"Trying to catch a glimpse?" Summer teased, giggling.

"Summer," Seth said standing up, "I have to talk to you." He looked at her for a moment and thought about what she had just said. "Well if you're offering…"

"Cohen!"

"Sorry, no, anyway, your dad called and told my dad he's coming for you in the morning." Seth looked at her, hoping she would be as upset as he was.

But she just sighed and shrugged her shoulders. "What can I do?"

.

* * *

.Ryan wandered around the first floor of the house, listening to Sandy and Kirsten talk in whispers about Summer. He decided he would go see Theresa and ask if she knew anything about what was going on.

"Hi," she said when she opened the door.

"Hey. Can I come in?"

Theresa just nodded and let him in.

"Have you been in there lately?" Ryan asked her, referring to the main house where all the Summer drama was happening.

"No, why? Is everything okay?"

He raised an eyebrow at Theresa. "I don't know…Summer's in there…"

"She came back?"

"On a bus, I think. I don't think her dad knew."

"Wow," Theresa said, then looked at Ryan thoughtfully. "Remember being so crazy about someone you would do something like that?"

"Yeah," Ryan said, knowing she was talking about them when they were not much younger.

Samantha woke up and started cooing, and Ryan picked her up from her bassinet.

"She's so beautiful," he looked into the little girl's eyes.

"Yeah, she gets that from me," Theresa joked, and they both laughed.

.

* * *

.Kirsten let Marissa in when she got to the Cohen house, and Marissa wanted to know where Summer was. When Kirsten told her Summer was upstairs in the bathroom, she asked about Ryan.

"I don't know, he was around here a minute ago. I think he might have gone out back."

"Thanks," Marissa said and made her way outside.

Seth pushed Summer back into the bathroom.

"I don't want you to leave," he told her honestly.

"I don't either."

"I have a plan…"

"Cohen, if this involves a model home, you better-"

"Shhhh," he hushed her, closing the bathroom door behind them.


	21. The Plan

"The Plan"  
  
Note: Still don't own The O.C. or any of its characters...And still sorry about the dots...  
Summary: Theresa learns the reason for Evan's strange behavior and Marissa learns the reasons for Seth and Summer stranger behavior.  
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* * *

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Ryan and Theresa were talking and playing with Samantha when someone knocked on the door of the poolhouse. They looked at each other, puzzled.

"Can I talk to you?" Evan asked as Theresa opened the door.

She turned around to Ryan. "Ryan," she started, but he knew what she wanted.

"I'll watch her," Ryan offered, holding Samantha on his chest and patting her back.

"Thanks," Theresa said and stepped out of the poolhouse and pulled the door behind her. "What is it?" she asked Evan.

"My dad tried really hard to get a job here," he said as if he was making sense.

"But, you said you moved here…**because** he got a job here."

"I lied."

Theresa laughed in disbelief. "Okay, so…why did you move here?"

"Because of me," Evan said looking at his feet, hoping Theresa wouldn't notice his eyes filled with tears.  
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* * *

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Marissa walked out onto the back patio of the Cohens' house and saw Theresa and Evan together. She immediately went back into the house, not wanting to interrupt. Ryan must be upstairs, she thought, and made her way toward his room.  
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* * *

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Seth finished writing a note, and folded it up.

"You really like writing notes, don't you Cohen?" Summer said sarcastically.

"Ha ha, Summer," Seth said, sneering at her, as he picked up the note that read 'Mom and Dad and Summer's Dad' on it.

"Wow, are we really doing this?" Summer asked Seth as well as herself.

"I can't lose you again, Summer. If you don't feel the same way, let me know-"

She stopped his words by putting her hand over his mouth. "Let's do this," she said.

They started to walk out of the bathroom covertly, looking both ways to make sure no one would see them. They were in the hallway when they realized Summer was still wearing only a towel.

"Cohen, what were you thinking?" she whispered as loudly as she could whisper, trying to show her irritation.

"It's not my fault, where's your bag?" he whispered back, also hissing the words.

They were too caught up in their argument to notice the visitor walking toward them.  
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* * *

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Marissa rounded the corner and saw her best friend in a towel, quietly arguing with Seth. To them, she thought, arguing was like foreplay. Why couldn't it be like that for Ryan and her. But then she noticed they were up to something. Seth had a note and Summer was in a towel.

"What are you guys doing?" Marissa asked cautiously as she approached them.

Seth was so startled by this that he jumped and the note flew from his hand.

Marissa stopped short of where it fell and picked it up.

She looked from the names on the note, to Summer, to Seth and back to the note. What on earth were they doing?

"Uh," Seth Stuttered, looking back and forth from Summer to Marissa. Marissa had caught them, and he didn't know what to say.

"Uh, no, nothing," Summer stammered. "We, uh…"

"We were just – well, we…" Seth made excessive hand gestures, but was still at a loss for an explanation. Neither of them knew how to explain what it looked like they were doing.

"Oh my God, you guys are leaving," Marissa accused, wide-eyed.

"No!" Summer said loudly, laughing nervously. "Why would you think that? No…"

Marissa looked at Seth.

"No, we're not….leaving," he lied, but his phony laugh told the truth.

"Uh!" she pouted. "Where are you going?" she asked, not believing either of them.

Summer looked to Seth for a reply.

"Summer's dad is coming in the morning, he's coming back to get her and we can't let that happen. You have to help us by not telling anyone."

Marissa looked uncomfortable with this and persisted. "Where? Where are you going?"

"Look," Summer finally piped up, "We don't know yet, but I can't go back to Baltimore. Did you know that some people still wear tapered-leg jeans there?" Summer realized this wasn't the time for fashion commentary. "We were thinking The Mermaid Inn, just for a little while, until we figure out what to do," she said calmly, looking down from time to time.

"Marissa, please don't tell anyone…" Seth begged.

"So let me get this straight – You," she said looking at Seth, "are going to run away – again? And you," she directed her glance to Summer, "are going with him - the guy who dropped his compass in the water the day after he left last time?"

Summer and Seth looked at each other with uncertainty and said in harmony, "Yeah, so?"

Marissa laughed and rolled her eyes. "Okay, whatever. I won't say a word."  
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* * *

.  
Evan looked deep into Theresa's eyes as he held back his own tears. "I could really fall for you, you know that?"

She chuckled. "Is that a bad thing?"

He leaned down and kissed her lightly, then pulled her body toward him and they kissed eagerly.

When they finally stopped kissing, Evan looked at Theresa seriously. "There's something I have to tell you."

"Did I mention I'm from Chino?" she smiled. "I think I can handle whatever you have to say."

Just then, Ryan was on his way out of the poolhouse but stopped at the door when he heard that a secret was about to be revealed. He started to turn and go back to playing with the baby, but something made him stop and listen.

"The reason we left…."

Theresa listened intently. And from behind the door that she had failed to close all the way, so did Ryan

"I have a son."

Theresa's mouth dropped open. So did Ryan's.

"He's two months old, and his mother and I were only together for a few months, but I wanted to stay and raise him. My parents were ashamed of the whole thing, so they decided to rip all of us away from the lives we knew, just so they wouldn't have to be parents of a teenage father." Evan waited for a response from Theresa, but she didn't know what to say.

"I guess…" she started, "I guess we have…more in common than I thought," she said, a bewildered look on her face.

Evan smiled back, but got serious again. "Don't tell anyone, please. My parents would probably move again if people here found out."

"I won't say anything." Theresa took Evan's hand and started to lead him back into the poolhouse. "Let's go relieve Ryan of babysitting duty."

Hearing this, Ryan rushed back to the bed and sat down with Samantha. 


	22. The Preparations

"The Preparations"

Note: I don't own The O.C. or any of its characters. Seriously, I don't.  
Sorry still for the formatting issues. This story is almost over, I'd say another 3 or so more chapters.  
Summary: Seth and Summer get ready for their trip, as their plans are revealed to another person. Ryan sees what else may be out there for him.  
Marissa left Seth and Summer to their plotting and planning to go find Ryan. She didn't know why. She didn't want to talk to him, she just wanted to see him.  
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* * *

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Theresa and Evan went back into the poolhouse and Theresa took Samantha from Ryan.

"Thanks, Ryan," Theresa said.

"No Problem," Ryan said, looking sideways at Evan. He didn't trust this guy, but he wasn't sure if it was because of his secret, or because of his relationship with Theresa.

Ryan went to leave and opened the door to Lauren, who was about to knock.

"Hey," she said, smiling suddenly at the sight of Ryan. "Is Evan here?"

"Yeah," Ryan said, stepping out of the way.

Lauren walked in and told Evan that their parents were leaving to go out to dinner, and if he wanted to go with them, he should go now. He didn't want to go, so Lauren left and Ryan followed.

"So what are you up to?" she asked Ryan, her crush on him blatantly obvious. Her blonde hair was in its usual high ponytail and her lips shone with fresh lip gloss. Ryan thought she was attractive too, but wasn't the type to get excited over a cute girl, especially when he already had a girlfriend. Even if he and his girlfriend were struggling not to break up, at least they were struggling.

"I don't know…nothing, I guess," he said as he rubbed the back of his neck, wondering what someone who seemed as innocent as Lauren thought of her brother fathering a child.

"Maybe you could come over to my house. We could, I don't know, watch TV or…Oh! I make really good milkshakes," she nodded, raising her eyebrows.

Ryan had to smile at her sweetness. A girl hadn't offered him a milkshake since he was 12 years old and he and Theresa used to hang out in a neighborhood diner in Chino.

"Uh, no thanks, I really shouldn't," Ryan said.

"Okay," she was still smiling, "I'll see you later?"

"Yeah, of course," Ryan said, amazed that she wasn't upset. He'd had enough girl drama to last him the rest of his life, and her lack of disappointment was refreshing. He didn't notice that the main source of this drama lately, Marissa Cooper, was standing inside the house watching him talk to Lauren.  
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* * *

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"So what's his name?" Theresa asked Evan. She had just come back from putting a sleeping Samantha down in the main house, and sat on the bed next to him. "Your son…what's his name?"

"Nathaniel Jay…"

"That's nice," Theresa said sincerely. "That's a good name."

"How did you come up with the name Samantha?" Evan asked.

"When Ryan and I were kids, we used to hang out at this diner. We'd go there just to get away and…be together. Anyway, it was called Sammie's Diner, and we just knew, when she was born, she would be Samantha."

Evan leaned in and kissed Theresa. She sat up and swung one leg over his lap so that she was straddling him. She kissed him back as she held his face and he unzipped her dress in the back.  
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* * *

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After Lauren left, Ryan went back into the house. He walked into the kitchen, where Marissa sat at the table, reading an old magazine.

"Hey," Ryan said. Marissa looked up, pretending to be surprised.

"Oh hi," she said, looking back down at the magazine.

"Did you see Summer? How's she doing?"

"Yeah, I saw her," Marissa said, not looking up at Ryan. "She's fine, she and Seth are upstairs talking."

"Oh," Ryan noticed Marissa giving him the cold shoulder, but didn't say anything. He didn't want to start fighting again, so he just grabbed a bagel and headed upstairs.  
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* * *

.

"Hey," Ryan said with a mouthful of bagel. He stopped in his tracks when he noticed the tension in the hallway between Seth and Summer. "What's going on?" he asked with a confused frown.

Seth put the note in his hands behind his back and Summer placed her hands on her hips. They glanced at each other before saying "Nothing," once again in unison.

"Uh huh," Ryan said, still eyeing them suspiciously.

"Well, actually," Seth started, an idea popping into his head. "We were just going to, uh, you know, go…"

"Down to the pier," Summer helped him out, nodding exaggeratedly.

"Yeah," Seth agreed, we were just gonna go get a balboa bar, and, you know, hang out. But see, here's the thing: Summer," he said, gesturing toward her while he rolled his eyes in fake disapproval, "forgot her backpack," he continued, compensating for his fabrication with excessive hand gestures, "downstairs, so…" He laughed, trying to feign casualness, then cleared his throat. "Could you go down there and grab it for her?"

He looked back and forth between the odd couple, wondering what they were up to, continuing to munch on his bagel.

"Please?" Summer piped up with a big cheesy smile, and batted her eyelashes.

"Okaaaay," Ryan agreed. He started to go back downstairs, but paused. "When I get back here, you're gonna tell me what this is about." He wasn't asking, he was telling. And less than a minute later, he was back with Summer's grubby backpack.

She took it from him. "Thanks," she said, pursing her lips and nodding. "I'm just gonna go…" She nodded toward the bathroom door. "Get dressed." She disappeared into the bathroom and closed the door.

Ryan and Seth stood alone in the hall; Ryan was staring Seth down, waiting for an answer. Seth whistled lightly and tried to look at something other than Ryan.

"So…how's it going?" Seth tried to be calm and avoid Ryan's suspicions.

"What are you doing, Seth?" Ryan finally inquired.

Seth laughed nervously. "I told you, man, we're going to hang out at the beach – maybe hit the Crab Shack, you know, spend some time together-"

"Seth," Ryan said with a warning tone. He knew Seth too well to believe his story. He knew from his nervous actions and shaky voice that something else was going on. "What are you planning?"

Seth gave up and let out a deep sigh. "Alright, dude, but you can't tell anyone."

Ryan just raised his eyebrows and waited.

"Summer's dad is coming in the morning. He's coming for her, to take her back to Baltimore." Seth paused, hoping he wouldn't have to clarify further.

"Uh huh, so…" Ryan said, still waiting for a full explanation.

"So we aren't going to let him," Seth said flatly. "We're leaving…together."

"What?!" Ryan asked, stunned.

"Don't tell them, please."

"Where are you guys going?"

"Tonight we're going to the Mermaid and then…we don't know yet, we'll just wing it from there, I guess."

"Seth, you can't run away…_again_."

"I can't lose Summer…_again_," Seth said, almost pleading with Ryan to understand.

Summer swung open the bathroom door, now dressed in denim capris and a plain white t-shirt. "Much better," she exclaimed before noticing Ryan's concerned expression.

"Uh!" She looked at Seth accusingly. "You have the biggest mouth, Cohen!"

"You guys don't have to do this," Ryan interjected, waving his half-eaten bagel in the air.

"Oh yeah?" Seth said, "Then what do you suggest?"

Ryan sighed. "I don't know man, but…"

"That's just it," Seth spoke honestly. "No one knows what to do, so Summer and I just keep getting torn apart."

"Aw, Cohen," Summer smiled from behind sad eyes. She hugged him for a moment, then told him and Ryan she would go to Seth's room and start packing a bag for him.


	23. The Betrayal

"The Betrayal"

Note: I don't own The O.C. or any of it's characters. I don't own Mickey Mouse or Disney or anything else in the story except my own characters.  
Sorry it took so long to update, I'm busy these days. And sorry it's a short chapter.

Summary: Evan and Theresa get closer, Ryan gets a little pissed off, then gets a little action...

* * *

In the poolhouse, Theresa was laying on top of Evan, kissing his neck and collarbone. He had unzipped her dress and pulled the straps off her shoulders. She peeled his t-shirt off, but not before noticing the print on the front of it.

"Mickey Mouse?" she teased him, rubbing his strong chest with her small hands.

His mouth dropped open in playful shock, as he held on to her bare hips tightly. "Hey, that's vintage Disney right there," he said looking at the wadded up shirt on the bed.

Theresa's smile widened and she leaned down to kiss him. Their lips locked and their tongues expressed the excitement they felt. Theresa sat back up, still straddling Evan, and began to unbutton his jeans.

* * *

Once Summer was in Seth's room and out of earshot, Ryan glared at Seth and shamefully shook his head. 

"When I had to leave, you would barely speak to me. You were so pissed, you decided to disappear from everything here, including Summer," Ryan frowned, pointing down the hall to Seth's room. "And now you're just gonna leave me here to fend for myself?"

"Ryan, you'll be fine without me here-"

"That's not the point," Ryan said, becoming irritated. "You're being a hypocrite, Seth." When Seth didn't answer, Ryan let out an annoyed sigh and brushed past him, leaving him alone, and speechless.

* * *

In his room, Ryan collapsed on his bed, exhausted from the day's events. On his back, he stared at the glow-in-the-dark plastic stars on the ceiling, no doubt placed there by Seth when he was younger. Or, knowing Seth, maybe a couple months ago. Seth was still so young at heart; he wouldn't last a day on the run, Ryan thought. Just as he was contemplating a way to help Seth and Summer, he was interrupted by a knock at the door. 

"Marissa," he muttered to himself as he got up and walked toward the door.

"Surprise!" the girl said when he opened the door. And he was surprised, because it was not Marissa. It was Lauren, holding two tall glasses, one in each hand, wearing a huge smile that showed all of her pearly white teeth.

"Hey," Ryan said, holding back a big grin himself.

"I thought if you didn't want to come to the milkshake," she said handing him one of the frothy glasses, "I'd bring the milkshake to you." And the teeth flashed again.

"Uh, thanks…" Ryan said, no longer able to keep from smiling. "That's really…thank you."

She stood in his doorway, still smiling, her eyes glancing expectantly into his bedroom.

"Oh, sorry, come on in," he stepped out of the way for her.

"So this is your room?" she asked, looking around amused.

"Uh, yeah, I haven't really had time to get settled in yet…"

"No, it's cute." She nodded and turned around to look at Ryan.

"Cute, huh?" He rubbed the back of his neck. "Not exactly what I was going for."

She hadn't stopped smiling since he opened the door, and it was becoming infectious. Ryan rubbed his jaw, trying to wipe his own smile away.

"Try your milkshake," she ordered, not trying to sound as bossy as she did. He took a drink from the long pink straw and she followed his lead, doing the same.

"It's good," he finally said, finishing a long drink. "Strawberry?"

"Mm hmm," she answered, still holding her straw between her thumb and finger, her full lips playing on the end of it. She was looking up at Ryan from under her long eyelashes. She was a girl in every sense of the word: feminine, pretty, nurturing, sweet. Ryan couldn't help but stare back. She was so attractive, but at the same time so simple and low-maintenance. Her jean shorts were very plain and her white halter top was tight and simple. She wore plain white tennis shoes with no socks, and the word 'cute' kept popping into Ryan's mind, which didn't happen too often. He found himself wondering what her glossy lips would taste like and what her smooth skin would…

"So anyway," he interrupted his own thoughts, "you made this?" He held up the milkshake before taking another long sip.

"Yep," she chirped. "It's my special recipe." She bit the side of her bottom lip, not taking her eyes off of Ryan's.

Almost out of instinct, Ryan stepped right in front of Lauren and took her drink from her. After he set both of their glasses on the desk, he turned around nervously, but Lauren was already sitting on his bed. He sat down next to her apprehensively, and turned to his left to look at her. They leaned in toward each other slightly, then Ryan stopped.

"I sort of…have a girlfriend, you know…" he said, sounding as though he were trying to convince himself and not Lauren.

Eyes wide, Lauren nodded at him. "Sort of?" she asked sincerely.

"No, yeah, I – I…"

She put her left hand on the right side of his face, pulled him in close to her. Ryan closed his eyes just as he thought Lauren was about to kiss him. But she didn't.

"Okay," she said standing up. "I guess I'll go," she said, smiling again. She went to get the glasses she brought over, but Ryan stopped her.

"Wait," he was at her side so quickly he startled her and caused to giggle at herself. Ryan felt like a lost puppy again, just like he had when his mother had abandoned him so long ago. He couldn't figure Marissa out, no matter how hard he tried, and he craved the effortlessness that Lauren brought with her everywhere she went. His best friend and the closest thing he'd had to a brother, even considering Trey, was about to leave his life. He wanted to be close to someone, even if that someone was a person he barely knew.

Ryan took her face in his hands and tilted it up toward his. He inhaled sharply as he neared her face, smelling the fresh, light, citrus scent of her skin. She parted her lips as he lowered himself into the kiss, leaning his head to the right to get full access. His tongue made its way to hers and the kiss persisted as Lauren knees shook and she grabbed Ryan's waist for support.


End file.
